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Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
Munich, Germany, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday called for continued vigilance over the latest dangerous developments in Japan, saying the Japanese leadership's erroneous statements on the Taiwan issue directly challenge China's sovereignty and the post-World War II world order.
Wang Yi, also a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, made the call at the "China in the World" session of the 62nd Munich Security Conference, where he delivered a speech and answered questions.
When asked about China's responsibility for the renewed escalation of tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, Wang Yi rejected the notion that the situation in the region was becoming increasingly tense. He noted that globally, peace has generally been maintained only in Asia, and even recent local conflicts, such as those on the Cambodia-Thailand border, were quickly resolved thanks to the efforts of all parties, in which China played a significant role. The diplomat stated that China has become a pillar of peace in Asia and will continue to play a constructive role in ensuring regional stability, serving as an important global force for peace.
However, Wang Yi acknowledged that the Asia-Pacific region is not without its challenges and called for vigilance against the latest dangerous trends in Japan.
He noted that the current Japanese prime minister publicly stated that any unforeseen situation in the Taiwan Strait would constitute a so-called "existential threat," which would allow Japan to exercise its right to collective self-defense. Wang Yi called this the first time in 80 years since World War II that a Japanese prime minister has publicly made such an outrageous statement. The Chinese foreign minister noted that such statements directly challenge China's national sovereignty, the post-war international order under which Taiwan was returned to China, and the political commitments Japan has made to China. He emphasized that China will never tolerate such a situation, nor will the 1.4 billion Chinese people.
Wang Yi noted that today, while in Germany, one can compare the post-war attitudes toward history in Japan and Europe. He noted that Germany had comprehensively eliminated fascism and passed laws banning Nazi propaganda. In contrast, in Japan, Class A war criminals are still memorialized in a shrine, which is visited by a steady stream of Japanese politicians, who venerate them as "heroic souls." Such a phenomenon is unthinkable in Europe, Wang Yi stated, calling it the root cause of all the problems.
The Japanese leadership's erroneous statements regarding the Taiwan issue clearly demonstrate that Japan's ambitions to seize and colonize Taiwan have not faded, and the specter of militarism still lingers in the country, Wang Yi emphasized. The diplomat also recalled that it was under the pretext of a so-called "existential threat" that Japan launched its aggression against China and attacked the Pearl Harbor military base in the United States.
The lessons of the past are right before us and must be carefully studied, said Wang Yi. If Japan refuses to correct itself, it will inevitably repeat the same mistakes, and therefore people of good will must be vigilant. He reminded that, above all, the Japanese people themselves must not be blinded and coerced again by far-right forces and extreme ideologies. Wang Yi called on all peace-loving countries to send a warning to Japan that if it again attempts to return to its old path, it will bring about its own destruction, and if it again resorts to reckless behavior, it will only suffer accelerated defeat and even greater losses.
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