China warns Japan over Takaichi's Taiwan comments, says Tokyo crossed a ‘red line’

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday called it “shocking” for Japan’s leader to openly send a wrong signal on Taiwan, according to an official statement — the latest escalation in a dispute that has strained bilateral ties for more than two weeks.

Wang, the most senior Chinese official to comment publicly on the matter, said Japan was crossing a “red line that must not be touched”, according to the statement published on the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ website.

He accused Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi of attempting to intervene militarily over Taiwan, referring to her November 7 remarks in parliament, where she said a hypothetical Chinese attack on democratically governed Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo.

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The dispute — one of the most serious between China and Japan in years — has now spilled over into trade and cultural exchanges. On Friday, China raised the matter with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, vowing to defend itself.

Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory and has not ruled out using force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan’s government rejects those claims and insists that only the island’s people can determine their future.

Japan’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately comment on Wang’s remarks on Sunday. A day earlier, responding to China’s letter to the UN, the ministry dismissed Beijing’s accusations as “entirely unacceptable” and reaffirmed that Japan’s commitment to peace remained unchanged.

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Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday also condemned China’s letter, saying, “The letter not only contains rude and unreasonable content but also maliciously distorts historical facts. Furthermore, it violates Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force in international relations.”

Wang said China must “resolutely hit back” to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity, adding that the response was also necessary “to defend the hard-won postwar achievements secured with blood and sacrifice.”

He warned that if Japan “persists in its wrong course and continues down this path,” countries and people would have the right to “re-examine Japan’s historical crimes” and “resolutely prevent the resurgence of Japanese militarism.”

China is Japan’s second-largest export market after the United States, importing about $125 billion worth of Japanese goods in 2024 — mainly industrial equipment, semiconductors and automobiles — according to UN COMTRADE data.