China Criticizes Sanae Takaichi, but China Itself Is to Blame for Worsening Relations with Japan |
By Satoshi Ogawa
8:00 JST, January 10, 2026
Although Japan-China relations seemed to worsen after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remark that a Taiwan contingency could constitute a “survival-threatening situation,” the fact is that the relationship has been deteriorating for over a decade because Chinese President Xi Jinping’s hegemonic ambitions and assertive military activities have awakened the Japanese people to the military threat posed by China.
China conducted military exercises around Taiwan and in the Western Pacific at the end of 2025. The exercises were believed to be aimed at showing its military capabilities, including those needed for a maritime blockade and so-called anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD), in which Chinese forces could intercept U.S. aircraft carriers. China also conducted another practical exercise last June in which two Chinese Navy carriers simulated fighting each other, with one playing the role of a U.S. carrier in the Western Pacific. The Japanese government concluded that it was a rehearsal for A2/AD against U.S. carriers. If the potential of such A2/AD operations could be proven, China might think it could annex Taiwan without U.S. forces intervening.
In early December, two H-6K Chinese bombers flew between Okinawa Island and Miyakojima Island, then headed northeast. They flew as far as the waters off Shikoku before turning back, accompanied by Russian bombers. The H-6K is a modernized version of the H-6, capable of launching a CJ-20 air-to-ground cruise missile, which can deliver a nuclear warhead and has a maximum range of more than 1,500 kilometers. This exercise was seen as a demonstration that Chinese bombers could bomb Tokyo or the U.S. naval base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
China has been increasing its military activities in the Western Pacific since 2013. That autumn, an H-6 Chinese bomber flew across the “first island........