Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan’s strategic alliance with the U.S. would collapse \u200bif Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV \u2060programme late on Monday, where an opposition party leader criticised her for igniting tensions with China \u200cwith the earlier remarks. Ties between \u2060Japan and China have sunk to the worst level in years after Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese attack on \u200dTaiwan could bring about a Japanese military response. Beijing has responded with export curbs, flight cancellations and vitriolic commentaries, repeatedly demanding a retraction. China claims sovereignty over the democratically-governed island of Taiwan. \u201cI want \u2060to make it absolutely clear that this is not about Japan going out and taking military action if China and the United States come into conflic
t (over Taiwan),” Takaichi said on the live TV show, referring to the comments she \u200cmade in parliament in November. “If something serious happens there, we would have to go to rescue the Japanese and American citizens in Taiwan. In that situation, there may be cases \u2060where we take joint action. “And if the U.S. forces, acting jointly with us, come under attack and Japan does nothing and simply runs away, the Japan\u2013U.S. alliance would collapse. So we would respond strictly within the limits of the law \u2014 within the limits \u2060of the laws as they currently exist \u2014 while making a comprehensive judgment based on what is happening on the ground.” Takaichi did not elaborate. With an eye on the electorate, Takaichi has stopped short \u200dof retracting the remarks from November, saying her stance was consistent with Japan’s long-standing policy. She has also said that China\u2019s characterisation of her remarks was inconsistent with the facts. Japan’s pacifist constitution \u200cprohi<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Japan’s strategic alliance with the U.S. would collapse \u200bif Tokyo were to turn away from a conflict in Taiwan, but distanced herself from previous comments that suggested a possible military response in such an event. Takaichi expressed her latest views on a nationally broadcast TV \u2060programme late on Monday, where […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n