The Chinese Foreign Ministry slammed as a gross interference in China’s internal affairs, Japan’s new defense white paper, released today, for its inclusion of Taiwan on the list of “defense” concerns for Japan. “Stabilizing the situation surrounding Taiwan is important for Japan’s security and the stability of the international community,” the paper said, reported Kyodo News Service.
“With military activities in the East and South China seas and around Taiwan becoming more active, we need to pay more attention to the military trends of the two countries [the United States and China] in the Indo-Pacific region,” Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said at a press conference when asked why Taiwan stability was mentioned in the report. “We need to pay close attention with a sense of crisis more than ever before.”
