Japan's provocation on Taiwan may backfire: China Daily editorial

In a blatant move to play the "Taiwan card" and show its political loyalty to the United States, Japan held the first-ever security talks between the ruling parties of Japan and the Taiwan island on Friday. Such a provocative move was naturally condemned by Beijing.

According to media reports, the so-called 2+2 talks, initiated by Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, involved two "legislators" from Taiwan's secessionist-minded Democratic Progressive Party and two Japanese foreign affairs and national defense officials.

A Japan Times report said the dialogue discussed military exchanges and coast guard cooperation, without disclosing more details.

In response, China's Foreign Ministry lodged solemn representations with Japan, and its spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, reiterated China's firm opposition to any form of official exchanges with the island of Taiwan, which is an inalienable part of China's territory.

This is not the first time that Tokyo has meddled in the Taiwan question. A series of Japanese moves and its politicians' provocative remarks concerning Taiwan this year have already cast a shadow over bilateral ties.

During Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's visit to the United States in April, Washington and Tokyo for the first time in half a century mentioned Taiwan in a joint statement issued by Suga and US President Joe Biden.

In July, Japan said in its annual defense white paper that stability in the Taiwan Straits is "more important than ever," and claimed it is threatened by "increasing military pressure" from the Chinese mainland.

Japan's new enthusiasm in provoking the Chinese mainland's sensitive nerve over the Taiwan question stems from its obsession to show political loyalty to the US and cater to the US' Indo-Pacific strategy to contain the Chinese mainland.

Japan's accusation of increasing military pressure from the Chinese mainland does not hold water. It is the US that is mounting strategic pressure over the Taiwan question and worsening the security situation in the Taiwan Straits.

The US, out of its ulterior strategic intentions, has not only frequently sent warships to sail through the Taiwan Straits but also approved arms sales to the Chinese island and strengthened its military ties with it in open violation of its one-China commitment.

Hence, Japan's warming relations with Taiwan will only jeopardize its relations with the Chinese mainland and add more complexity to the security outlook in the Taiwan Straits. In the long run, Japan will have to face a strong backlash from such self-serving opportunism in echoing the US strategy.

Both Japan and the US should not indulge in miscalculations and underestimate China's resolve to realize unification as well as its capability to defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty.