Japan urged to take practical steps to honor its commitments to China

Beijing urged Tokyo on Friday to take practical steps to honor its commitments to China if it wants to develop a strategic, mutually beneficial relationship with the country.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning made the remarks after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi affirmed in an interview the unchanged stance of advancing the strategic relations between China and Japan of mutual benefit.

"If Japan truly hopes to develop the strategic relationship of mutual benefit with China and make the relationship a constructive and stable one fit for the new era, Japan needs to uphold the spirit of the four political documents between the two countries and its political commitments, retract the erroneous remarks at once and take practical steps to honor its commitments to China," Mao said.

The blatant and erroneous remarks on Taiwan made by the Japanese prime minister earlier this month implied the possibility of Japan intervening in the Taiwan Strait by force, which triggered outrage and condemnation from the Chinese people, Mao said at a daily news conference in Beijing. China firmly opposes such moves, she said.

Mao also slammed Japan's recent moves of breaking free from its exclusively defense-oriented principle and speeding up rearmament, warning that going back to the path of militarism will only "end in failure".

It was reported that Japan has exported domestically produced Patriot surface-to-air missile interceptors to the United States for the first time under eased restrictions on arms exports.

There are also reports saying that Japan's Liberal Democratic Party has begun discussions on revising the three non-nuclear principles of not possessing, not producing and not permitting the introduction of nuclear weapons, as well as increasing defense spending.

In recent years, Japan has been easing the restrictions and seeking military buildup, Mao noted.

While claiming it hopes to build a world free of nuclear weapons, Japan is actually strengthening cooperation on extended deterrence and even seeking to revise its three non-nuclear principles to open the door for enabling nuclear sharing arrangements.

"What exactly is Japan seeking to achieve?" Mao asked. "If Japan seeks to go back to the path of militarism, violate its commitment to peaceful development and disrupt postwar international order, the Chinese people as well as the international community will not allow it," she said.

zhoujin@chinadaily.com.cn