Chronologies
Japan - China
Chronology from May 2024 to Dec 2024
: 400;">: Uniqlo faces a storm of online criticism in China after a BBC report quotes the chief executive of its owner as saying the company does not source cotton from the far western region of Xinjiang.
: 400;">: A delegation from seven economic groups in the Kansai region confirms with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng their desire to cooperate in improving and strengthening Japan-China ties.
: 400;">: Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA), an external bureau of the Japanese defense ministry, plans to develop a new model of radar to improve interception capabilities against hypersonic missiles.
: 400;">: Japanese foreign ministry moves up its schedule for placing security guards on school buses for Japanese schools in China from April to the end of March by including the relevant expenses in the fiscal 2024 supplementary budget.
: 400;">: Kyodo reports that China intends to remove a buoy it installed inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
: 400;">: China’s foreign ministry says that the requirement for short-term visas for Japanese will be waived from Nov. 30 through the end of next year. They were suspended in March 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
: 400;">: Japanese officials are closely watching to see if China keeps its promise to prevent further violations of Japan’s airspace after explaining that an incursion by a Chinese military aircraft nearly three months ago was unintentional and caused by turbulence.
: 400;">: Aiming to further cooperation in the space domain between US and SDF forces to counter security threats from China and Russia, about 10 members of the US space force will be stationed at Yokota Air Base in December.
: 400;">: Asahi editorializes that conditions are ripe for Japan and China to work to improve ties, as with the confrontation between the US and China expected to continue for the foreseeable future, the Xi administration wants to keep China’s relations with neighboring countries as good as possible and has been exploring approaches to improving relations with Japan.
: 400;">: Interviewed by Global Times, Takeshi Niinami, chair of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, emphasizes that personal visits to China and firsthand experience of the current state of its economy and society are crucial to fostering a good Japan-China relationship.
: 400;">: Ishiba holds his first meeting with Xi on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima with Ishiba telling reporters that “While there are many differences of opinion between Japan and China, we did agree to continue to hold meetings in the future.”
: 400;">: Japanese economy expands by an annualized 0.9% in Q 3 highlighting Japan’s frail economic recovery, as consumer spending held up but domestic demand has not fully picked up amid concerns that about a growing risk of a slowdown in the US and further weakness in China’s economy that could weigh on exports ahead.
: 400;">: Over 800 representatives from government bodies, businesses and institutions from China and Japan attend the 17th China-Japan Comprehensive Forum on Energy Saving and Environmental Protection in Tokyo on Saturday to explore cooperation opportunities in green transformation.
: 400;">: Saying that breaches of Japanese airspace by Chinese and Russian warplanes earlier in the year “not only violated Japanese sovereignty but also threatened the safety of Japan, and are absolutely unacceptable,” Ishiba renews a pledge to build up his country’s military and deepen its alliance with the United States under President-elect Donald Trump.
: 400;">: A new report from Human Rights Watch states that Chinese authorities are targeting and intimidating people living in Japan and engaging in activities deemed politically sensitive by the Chinese government.
: 400;">: A Global Times opinion piece advised being wary of Japanese nationalism since it has the potential to cause regional waves.
: 400;">: In its first visit to China in eight years a delegation of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives calls for China to exempt Japanese short-term visitors from visa requirements. It also calls for China’s active participation in the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo.
: 400;">: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Senior Vice President Ishii Yasuo confirms that in July the organization was hit by multiple cyberattacks on staff accounts through the Microsoft 365 cloud service but declines to provide details.
: 400;">: Japan’s defense ministry reports that fighters and helicopters took off from and landed about 20 times from the aircraft carrier Shandong south of Okinawa’s Miyako Island.
: 400;">: Huanqiu objects to a Nihon Keizai Shimbun article claiming that China was provoking the Ryukyu issue.
: 400;">: Japanese national security adviser Akiba Takeo visits China seeking to lay the groundwork for a meeting between the leaders of the two countries.
: 400;">: Citing unspecified government sources, Yomiuri reports that one of the China Coast Guard’s largest patrol ships made a rare move of sailing around the Senkaku Islands in June, apparently in response to the United States dispatching a patrol ship to help boost collaboration with Japan and the Philippines.
: 400;">: China’s National Defense University’s College of Joint Operations and the State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Games in Beijing simulate a scenario involving an attack on Shanghai by stealth fighters from Japan.
: 400;">: China informs Japan that an “unexpected obstruction” was what caused one of its military planes to breach Japanese airspace in August, seemingly attributing the blame to the Japanese defense force’s activities prior to the unprecedented intrusion.
: 400;">: In the first transfer in eight years under a bilateral agreement to help conserve the internationally protected crested ibis,16 birds born in Japan to parents sent by China arrive in Beijing.
: 400;">: Yomiuri editorializes in favor of Japan, the US, and South Korea strengthening support for the Philippines against Chinese aggression while appealing to the international communityon the need to maintain stability in the South China Sea and to deter China.
: 400;">: Sophie Luo Shengchun wife of jailed Chinese human rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi, visits Japan, calling for support for the release of her husband and all prisoners of conscience in the PRC.
: 400;">: People’s Bank of China and the Bank of Japan agree to renew their bilateral currency swap deal amounting to 200 billion yuan (about $28.13 billion).
: 400;">: China and Japan hold their 17th round of high-level consultations on maritime affairs in Tokyo, exchanging in-depth views on maritime affairs and agreeing to make the East China Sea a sea of peace, cooperation and friendship.
: 400;">: A report released by the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies titled “Chinese Modernization in the Eyes of Japanese” on Sept. 11 shows that 61.5% of respondents believe that Chinese modernization is positive for Japan’s development and modernization and 43.4% believe that “Chinese modernization is an opportunity for Japan, and active participation in bilateral cooperation can promote common development.”
: 400;">: China may allow the resumption of imports of ornamental nishikigoi carp, which had been halted since Nov. 2023 in protest against the release of treated water from TEPCO’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
: 400;">: China’s ultra-nationalist “little pinks” call for a boycott of major milk powder company Feihe following reports that it signed a letter of intent to develop a lactoferrin-based infant formula product with Japan’s Kyowa Hakko Biochemical Co.
: 400;">: During a phone call with Japan’s National Security Adviser Akiba Takeo, Chinese foreign minister says his country’s relations with Japan have gotten off to a “good start,” following the establishment of Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru’s government.
: 400;">: Highlighting China’s repeated acts of hegemony in the East and South China seas, DM Nakatani calls for a free and open Indo-Pacific at a meeting of the G7 defense ministers in Naples, Italy.
: 400;">: A China Daily editorial calls Ishiba’s political agenda inherently contradictory: he wants to rebalance the alliance with the US to increase Japan’s strategic autonomy and foster “constructive, stable” relations with neighboring China through dialogue and cooperation while at the same time pursuing an Asian version of NATO.
: 400;">: Yomiuri reports that on Sept. 25 the MSDF destroyer Sazanami transited the Taiwan Strait to counter China’s influence in East Asia.
: 400;">: A 17-member expert panel of Japan’s defense ministry confirms the necessity of strengthening domestic defense industry and promoting the export of defense equipment abroad.
: 400;">: Concerns remain among Japanese due to the Chinese government’s still not having provided a clear motive for the fatal stabbing of a Japanese boy on Sept. 18.
: 400;">: Responding to the latest round of large-scale Chinese military exercises encircling Taiwan, Yomiuri editorializes that if China thinks continued military threats and psychological intimidation can force Taiwan into submission, it would be a serious mistake.
: 400;">: Asahi editorializes against China’s military exercise around Taiwan following a similar intimidating show of force in May.
: 400;">: Writing in China Daily, research fellow in the China Institute of International Studies Xiang Haoyu advises that Japanese leaders need to strike a balance between catering to the domestic public, which means they should manage to maintain cooperation with China rather than simply taking a populist tough stance against China.
: 400;">: In a first, Defense Minister Nakatani Gen attends the NATO defense ministers’ meeting in Brussels, expressing deep concern over the closer military cooperation between not only Russia and China, but also between Russia and North Korea.
: 400;">: Yomiuri observes that Chinese mainstream media have remained silent on the news that Nihon Hidankyo, or Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, won the Nobel Peace Prize, interpreting the silence as reflecting the differences between Xi Jinping’s administration, which is focused on strengthening its nuclear capabilities, and Hidankyo’s efforts toward a world free of nuclear weapons.
: 400;">: Meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Laos, Ishiba and Premier Li Qiang confirm their commitment to promoting mutually beneficial ties as Ishiba expresses “serious concerns” over Chinese military movements in areas surrounding Japan.
: 400;">: China Military Online interprets reports that Japan’s defense ministry is in talks with several commercial ferry companies about using civil transport capacities to undertake military tasks as a move to cover up Japan’s strengthened war preparedness with a civil cloak and to establish an amphibious transport and logistics supply model similar to that of the US, which will facilitate their defense cooperation.
: 400;">: Japan’s new government says it hopes to improve ties with China after receiving a “forward-looking” congratulatory message from Beijing on the election of Prime Minister Ishiba.
: 400;">: In an article posted on the Hudson Institute’s website, Ishiba says that “the creation of an Asian version of NATO is essential to deter China by its Western allies” and that the creation of the Asian NATO he envisions “must also specifically consider America’s sharing of nuclear weapons or the introduction of nuclear weapons into the region.”
: 400;">: After Ishiba’s election as president of the LDP, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian expresses the PRC’s strong opposition toward Japanese politicians visiting Taiwan.
: 400;">: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian says at a routine daily press conference in response to Ishiba Shigeru’s’s election as LDP president that China has noted the election results but that it is Japan’s internal matter, and that China does not comment on it.
: 400;">: MSDF destroyer Sazanami sails through the Taiwan Strait on the 25th for the first time since the SDFs were formed. Kishida made the decision after consultation with his government and in response to the Chinese sending a reconnaissance plane into Japanese airspace in August.
: 400;">: Miyamoto Yuji, newly appointed president of the Japan-China Friendship Center and former Japanese ambassador to China, having recently visited China, comments that exchanges between the two countries have never truly ceased and that most Japanese people are eager to understand and also value their relationship with the real China.
: 400;">: Asahi editorializes on the need for Japan’s next prime minister to aim at improving ties with China.
: 400;">: Foreign Minister Kamikawa meets opposite number Wang Yi at the opening of the UN General Assembly demanding that China crack down on “unsubstantiated and malicious anti-Japanese social media posts [that are] directly related to children’s safety and absolutely unacceptable.”
: 400;">: Quad leaders issue the Wilmington Declaration expressing “serious concern about the situation in the East and South China seas.”
: 400;">: Employees at four Japanese companies say that some big firms in China have given Japanese employees and their families the option to be relocated home at the company’s expense, or are considering doing so.
: 400;">: Kyodo reports that, aiming to further strengthen collaboration amid China’s growing military assertiveness, Japan and the European Union plan to establish director general-level dialogue on security and defense issues.
: 400;">: Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko expresses condolences and says that the attack on the student on Sept. 18 occurred despite Tokyo’s requests for caution and enhanced safety as China marks a key anniversary of its war with Japan.
: 400;">: China and Japan reach a four-point agreement on the discharge of Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water that includes Japan establishing a long-term international monitoring arrangement and allowing stakeholders including China to conduct independent sampling and monitoring.
: 400;">: Reports state that, beginning in 2025, the coast guards of the Quad states will begin carrying one another’s personnel on their vessels that patrol the Indo-Pacific.
: 400;">: A 10-year-old boy is stabbed near a Japanese school in Shenzhen and dies while under treatment in a hospital. A 44-year-old man, surnamed Zhong, is taken into custody. Lin Jian, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, says the government will continue to take “effective measures” to protect “the safety of all foreigners in China.” Sept. 18, the anniversary of the 1931 Mukden incident that led to the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, is typically a time of heightened anti-Japanese sentiment.
: 400;">: Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning accompanied by two destroyers enters Japan’s contiguous zone for the first time.
: 400;">: Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs requests 350 million yen for the next fiscal year to pay for the security measures for each of the eleven Japanese schools in China, which will include posting one guard for each bus. A total of 3,305 students attend.
: 400;">: Former Environment Minister Koizumi Shinjiro says Japan-China relations would be “unlocked for the future through top-level diplomacy” while former LDP secretary general Ishiba Shigeru favors the creation of an Asian version of NATO as well as emphasizing to the US that it ”is able to enjoy its interests in Asia because of Japan’s cooperation.”
: 400;">: To counter illegal fishing in waters where China’s influence is growing, the coast guards of the Quad nations will launch joint patrols to monitor vessels in the Indo-Pacific.
: 400;">: Digital Minister Kono Taro asserts on a Fuji Television program that Japan needs to deploy its own nuclear submarines which, he said, would “make it difficult for the Chinese navy to move out into the Pacific at will.”
: 400;">: Commenting on China’s decision, reported in Hong Kong’s Sing Tao daily on Sept. 3, to establish a Ryukyu Research Center Nikkei correspondent Nakazawa Katsuji believes that China may have set its sights on Okinawa, perhaps in retaliation for Japan’s deepening ties with Taiwan.
: 400;">: A joint statement issued after the 2+2 meeting of Japanese and Australian foreign and defense ministers expresses serious concern over China’s escalating dangerous and coercive activities against the Philippines and condemns attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion in the East China Sea and elsewhere.
: 400;">: Mitsubishi CEO Nakanishi Katsuya calls for a more active strategy from the government to help Japanese companies counter increasing Chinese competition in their traditional stronghold of Southeast Asia.
: 400;">: Hong Kong’s government revamps a colonial-era coastal defense museum with a sharper focus on wartime anti-Japanese resistance, coinciding with the annual commemoration of Imperial Japan’s defeat 79 years ago.
: 400;">: Defense ministry requests ¥323.2 billion to build a satellite constellation network for guiding missiles in its initial budget request for fiscal 2025.
: 400;">: A Chinese man contracted to an affiliate of Japanese state broadcaster NHK goes off-script while reporting on graffiti at the Yasukuni Shrine saying in Chinese that the Senkaku Islands are “Chinese territory” and protesting “NHK’s historical revisionist propaganda” and “unprofessional practices.”
: 400;">: A Chinese naval survey ship enters territorial waters southwest of Kuchinoerabu Island at around 6 a.m. and exited southwest of Yakushima Island at around 7:53 a.m. as MSDF vessels and aircraft were conducting surveillance and intelligence gathering.
: 400;">: Yomiuri editorializes that China’s statement that it has “no intention” of violating the sovereignty of other countries is unacceptable, and that if airspace violations, which are serious violations of sovereignty, are not fully addressed, China may further escalate its provocations.
: 400;">: Japan’s defense ministry is to invest in AI, automation and improving troop conditions to address a worsening recruitment shortfall that has left its forces understaffed amid a buildup aimed at countering China’s growing military power.
: 400;">: Japanese steelmakers urge Tokyo to consider curbing cheap steel imports coming from China. China’s steel exports rose 24% to 53.4 million tons in the first half of 2024, on track for 100 million tons for the year.
: 400;">: Diet member and former LDP secretary-general Nikai Toshiro leads the first nonpartisan legislative group to visit China in five years. Nikai, 85, has close ties in China, has announced that he will not run again.
: 400;">: A Global Times commentary applauds the visit of Nikai’s delegation while noting that problems between the two countries have piled up. Japan’s provocative actions in the East China Sea and South China Sea challenge China’s core interests, as well as its alignment with the US that destabilizes the region, have become a source of concern for China.
: 400;">: According to an anonymous source said to be linked to the CCP and cited by Yomiuri the reason for the violation of Japan’s airspace on Aug. 26 was Japan’s actively conducting joint training exercises with the naval and air forces of NATO member countries since July and to “gauge Japan’s reaction.”
: 400;">: Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi calls China’s incursion “not just a severe violation of Japan’s sovereignty but a threat to our security,” adding that Japan would take all possible measures to monitor and act against any future violations of airspace.
: 400;">: Chinese Foreign Ministry says China has “no intention” to violate any country’s airspace, adding that “the competent Chinese authorities are learning and verifying the situation.”
: 400;">: Japan Coast Guard will make a budget request for funds to construct what would be its largest multipurpose patrol vessel to respond to disasters and evacuate remote island residents in the event of emergencies.
: 400;">: Japan’s Defense Ministry reveals that a Chinese Y-9 military intelligence-gathering aircraft violated Japan’s airspace off the Danjo Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture for about two minutes. This is the first time for a violation of Japan’s airspace by a Chinese military aircraft to be confirmed and announced.
: 400;">: Chinese fishing boats continue to operate in waters near Japan a year to the day after the release of treated water from the disabled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant and despite a Chinese embargo on Japanese seafood products over the release of the water.
: 400;">: Japanese machine tool producers’ orders from China increase 66% to 29.5 billion yen year-on-year from the end of July, offsetting a drop in domestic order which shrank for the 23rd month in a row.
: 400;">: Italian Navy’s aircraft carrier Cavour and frigate Alpino arrive at the MSDF base in Yokosuka to conduct joint training exercises with the MSDF to cooperate in response to China’s increasing maritime presence.
: 400;">: Reports note that Chinese prosecutors have indicted a Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma who was detained in March 2023 on suspicion of espionage. The Japanese government is calling for his early release, but his detention is expected to be prolonged further.
: 400;">: Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department issues arrest warrants for three Chinese men after graffiti are discovered on a stone pillar at the Yasukuni Shrine, the second such act of this year. Two of the men have already returned to China.
: 400;">: At the two-plus-two meeting, taking China’s increasing maritime expansion into account, India and Japan prepare to accelerate space and cyber security cooperation and boost joint drills to deepen security ties. Prime Minister Modi is to visit Japan before the end of the year.
: 400;">: After a visit to Taiwan by a bipartisan group of Japanese lawmakers, including former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, China’s embassy in Tokyo warns Japan that it should be prepared “to pay a heavy price” if it interferes with Beijing’s plans for Taiwan.
: 400;">: Chinese fishing vessels have been active in waters near Japan despite a Chinese embargo on Japanese seafood products following the release of treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that began a year ago. Japanese fishermen complain that Chinese fishermen have been pressuring them to leave their fishing grounds.
: 400;">: DM Minoru visits Yasukuni Shrine on the 79th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II, making a cash offering of his own money and explaining that he offered his heartfelt condolences and paid respect and reverence to those who sacrificed their lives. The Chinese foreign ministry lodges “serious protests” over the visit.
: 400;">: Ahead of the anniversary, Hideo Shimizu, former member of Unit 731, the notorious Japanese germ-warfare detachment during World War II, identifies the crimes of the Japanese army at the site where he served 79 years ago in Northeast China’s Harbin.
: 400;">: Yomiuri editorializes in favor of the Honda-Nissan agreement to collaborate on EV production to counter Chinese gains in that sector.
: 400;">: Website of the Shishi municipal government of Fujian prohibits fishers from “operating in sensitive sea areas” just prior to the Aug. 16 expiration of the Chinese central government’s fishing ban in the seas around the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands.
: 400;">: Interpreting Kishida’s instructions to the LDP to accelerate discussion on revising Japan’s pacifist constitution as a bid to win support from conservative forces ahead of an upcoming party leadership election, the Global Times quotes Lü Chao, director of the Institute of the US and East Asian Studies at Liaoning University, as saying that doing so will allow the former aggressor and defeated country [Japan] to potentially engage in wars against other countries or use the threat of war.”
: 400;">: Beijing University economist Michael Pettis refutes previous comparisons between Chinese and Japanese economic imbalances, saying that what is striking is not that Beijing is attempting a radically different solution to its economic imbalances from Tokyo’s solution in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but rather how similar its response has so far been to Tokyo’s.
: 400;">: Responding to US ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel’s statement to Bloomberg that America is looking to Japan to be a significant partner in Asia in terms of both hard power and soft power and that their relationship is “no longer an alliance of protection but projection,” China Daily editorializes that the statement plays into the hands of some alt-right politicians in Japan.
: 400;">: Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning reiterates China’s opposition to Japan’s unilateral discharge of water from the Fukushima site, the eighth batch of which was dumped on Aug. 7.
: 400;">: Aiming to encourage Mongolia to lower its level of reliance on China and Russia, with which the country has national borders, the Japanese and Mongolian governments enter the final phase of coordination toward a basic agreement on the transfer of defense equipment and technologies, under which the two countries will be able to export defense equipment to each other.
: 400;">: Japan, aiming to ensure its presence is felt in Central Asia against Russian and Chinese involvement, agrees with the five Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan on priority areas for collaboration including green technologies and resilience, connectivity and development of human resources.
: 400;">: In the latest collaboration between countries that have pushed back against China’s regional assertiveness the Philippines and Japan hold their first joint military exercises in the South China Sea, within the Philippines exclusive economic zone.
: 400;">: With Tesla and China’s BYD leading the growing global EV market, Honda and Nissan will partner to jointly develop software-related technologies for EVs.
: 400;">: China Military Online complains that the more aggressive US-Japan alliance implicit in the “2+2” US-Japan Security Consultative Committee (SCC) threatens Asia Pacific security and stability.
: 400;">: Liu Jinsong, director general of the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s department of Asian affairs, meets Yokochi Akira, chief minister of Japan’s embassy in Beijing, on Tuesday to express strong disapproval of Japan’s negative words and deeds about China during the meeting of the Japan-US Security Consultative Committee, at the two-plus-two security talks, by Japanese and US foreign and defense ministers, and at the meeting of foreign ministers of the Quad countries.
: 400;">: A new project, Dongwang Xigui (“looking east, returning west”) is launched in Tokyo to promote the return of Chinese cultural artifacts scattered in Japan to China, provide important resources for research into the history, culture and art of China, and promote in-depth exchanges and cooperation between China and Japan in the fields of historical research, cultural heritage protection and inheritance.
: 400;">: Japanese factory automation supplier Fanuc raises its annual net profit outlook by $117 million on a recovery in orders from China, where government subsidies are driving demand despite a sluggish economy.
: 400;">: A “Tainan Declaration” emanating from the 10th Japan-Taiwan Exchange Summit calls for both governments to establish a Taiwan-Japan basic relations law (台日關係基本法), initiate higher-level cooperation and urges the Japanese government to support Taiwan’s application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, WHO and other international organizations.
: 400;">: A thriving community of Chinese intellectuals has grown up in Tokyo. Describing themselves as the successors of China’s 40 years of reform and opening up, they express gratitude for the ability to escape the PRC’s constant surveillance and censorship.
: 400;">: Meeting in Tokyo with China in mind, the Quad foreign ministers issue a joint statement opposing unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas by force or coercion. They also affirm cooperation on maritime security and measures related to critical and emerging technologies and cybersecurity.
: 400;">: Responding to the Quad statement, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian says that the Quad keeps chanting the slogan of a free and open Indo-Pacific while all the while scaremongering, inciting antagonism and confrontation, and holding back other countries’ development
: 400;">: Zhou Zuyi ,Secretary of Fujian Provincial Committee and Chairman of the Standing Committee of Fujian Provincial People’s Congress leads a delegation to Japan.
: 400;">: Warning that China’s aggressive posture poses the “greatest strategic challenge” in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond, the US and Japan outline the most significant upgrade to their joint military alliance since 1960.
: 400;">: Wang Yi, meeting Kamikawa Yoko in Vientiane July 27 on the sidelines of a meeting of foreign ministers hosted by ASEAN ahead of the security-focused ASEAN Regional Forum. says relations are at a critical stage and must advance or be left behind.
: 400;">: Taiwan authorities announce plans to completely abolish import restrictions on Japanese food products, removing a major irritant to bilateral relations. China still restricts products from Fukushima and four other prefectures.
: 400;">: In what Beijing will see as the further militarization of Japan as well as the deepening of US-Japanese military cooperation, the Japanese and US governments aim to establish a production system in Japan for the AMRAAM medium-range air-to-air missile.
: 400;">: Japanese coast guard confirms that a China coast guard ship that had been sailing off Kubashima Island of the Senkakus left the contiguous zone on July 23, meaning that there are currently no current CCG vessels in the area.
: 400;">: Moriyama Hiroshi, chairperson of the LDP’s General Council, meets Chinese Foreign Minister and Politburo member Wang Yi in Beijing saying that “Today’s Japan-China relationship is not necessarily ideal…and that to make it truly constructive and stable, the embodiment of the mutually beneficial strategic relationship is important.”
: 400;">: Onizuka Mitsunori, mayor of remote Kita-Daitojima island, agrees to allow the Air Self-Defense Force to deploy mobile warning and control radar to track China’s growing military presence in local waters, adding that he will “carefully explain their concerns in a manner that does not cause anxiety.”
: 400;">: Japan’s Nippon Steel will withdraw from a joint venture with Baoshan Iron & Steel, marking a turning point in a 21-year relationship that was a symbol of China’s progress in modernizing its steel industry.
: 400;">: Given China’s continuing aggression in the area, the Japanese defense ministry has moved forward the timeline for deployment of improved missiles to defend the Nansei Islands.
: 400;">: A foreign ministry spokesperson expresses “China’s strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to” the recent joint maritime drill between Japan and the Taiwan region. Taiwan’s Patrol No. 9 inspection ship and Japan’s aircraft-carrying Sagami conducted a joint exercise off the southern tip of the Boso Peninsula and the waters near Izu Island.
: 400;">: Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting hosted by Tokyo expresses unity, but with noticeable differences among some nations’ positions regarding China and some dissension on Japan’s discharge of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
: 400;">: Reacting to the publication of the 2024 Defense White Paper, Asahi editorializes that Japan seems impatient to boost its deterrence power while communications with China remain inadequate on multiple levels.
: 400;">: Japan’s 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters reports that two China Coast Guard vessels entered Japanese territorial waters off the Senkaku Islands carrying what appeared to be guns. A Japan Coast Guard patrol vessel warned the CCG vessels to leave the waters.
: 400;">: Nikkei China Bureau Chief Momoi Yuri argues that the paucity of recent personal exchanges represents a significant missed opportunity, risking weakening bilateral relations while depriving Japan of firsthand knowledge about developments in China, leaving it at a disadvantage compared to other nations.
: 400;">: Global Times responds that if Japan-Germany cooperation solely focuses on the idea of “countering China” and distorts economic policy by overstretching the security concept, it will only hinder these countries’ progress and limit their own potential for growth.
: 400;">: With China in mind, Kishida and Olaf Scholz agree to establish a new bilateral framework for consultations on economic security. Measures to strengthen supply chains for semiconductors and other key products are expected to be on the agenda for consultations.
: 400;">: Japan’s defense ministry releases its annual White Paper saying, inter alia, that “Japan is facing the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II, and that it cannot be ruled out that a serious situation similar to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine may occur in the Indo-Pacific region in future, particularly in East Asia.”
: 400;">: Following the publication of Japan’s new defense white paper, which delivers its strongest words yet on Taiwan, and Prime Minister Kishida’s attendance at the recent NATO meeting, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian says that Japan must not interfere in China’s domestic affairs and not act as a “vanguard” of NATO’s Asia-Pacific expansion.
: 400;">: Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo describes itself as at a turning point with its store-opening strategy in China, after the chain’s parent, Fast Retailing, announced a “large profit fall” in China and Hong Kong during the three months through May. Uniqlo plans a “scrap and build” policy in the PRC, closing stores with low monthly sales and opening larger ones in better locations.
: 400;">: Gan Yu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Coast Guard, says that the CCG “took necessary control measures and drove away a Japanese fishing boat and several cruise ships that illegally entered the territorial waters of China’s Diaoyu Islands on July 10,” urging the Japanese side to immediately stop all illegal activities in these waters and warning that China reserves the right to counter otherwise.
: 400;">: China protests as MSDF destroyer Suzutsuki sails within 12 nautical miles of the Zhejiang coast without notifying China. Japan’s defense ministry has launched an investigation questioning the captain of the Suzutsuki, and the crew’s intention remains unclear.
: 400;">: Citing unnamed diplomatic sources, Kyodo reports that China and Japan did not use their defense hotline to communicate when an MSDF destroyer temporarily sailed into Chinese territorial waters, diplomatic sources said Thursday, calling into question the direct line’s effectiveness in crisis management.
: 400;">: Toyota, Honda, and Nissan report a combined year-on-year 12.9% decline from January-June in China. This is the third consecutive year of decline.
: 400;">: Japan and NATO set up a dedicated line for sharing highly confidential security information.
: 400;">: As NATO leaders convene in Washington to discuss the war in Ukraine and express concerns over China, a Pew poll reveals that 15 out of the 18 high-income countries surveyed expressed unfavorable views toward China, with Japan and Australia leading the pack with more than 8 in 10 in those countries viewing China negatively.
: 400;">: Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko, DM Minoru and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. hold talks in Manila affirming their intention to strengthen security cooperation in light of China’s increasingly aggressive maritime expansion.
: 400;">: With China in mind, Japan’s Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency will begin manufacturing a prototype device for practical use on Okinawa Prefecture’s Yonaguni Island by the end of this fiscal year. Research continues on the development of an over-the-horizon (OTH) radar that can detect targets at ranges beyond the capabilities of standard radar, since the radio waves emitted by radar currently used by the SDF cannot reach beyond the horizon.
: 400;">: Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa tells a news conference that a Chinese marine research vessel has installed a buoy in the waters north of Okinotorishima, adding that Chinese buoys have been observed near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, but it is unusual for a Chinese buoy to be set up on the Pacific side of Japan.
: 400;">: China Coast Guard (CCG) is more vigorously attempting to claim sovereignty over the waters around the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, warning off Japanese fishing vessels in the area and identifying some by name. Since October 2023 the CCG has also adopted stronger wording, using “illegal trespassing” in its posts rather than “intruding into territorial waters
: 400;">: In response to news that the second 2+2 Japan-Philippines meeting since April 2022 will be held in July and that the two will sign a Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), that will allow their respective militaries to visit each other’s soil.
: 400;">: Surveys of Chinese factory managers show a mixed outlook in June, with growth steady. The Purchasers Managers Index (PMI) for new export orders slipped to 49.4 from 49.6, perhaps reflecting announcements by the EU and US of plans to increase their tariffs on imports of electric vehicles from China.
: 400;">: Chinese conglomerate Fosun International will sell Japanese ski destination Hoshino Resorts Tomamu for 40.8 billion yen ($252 million), as Fosun sheds nonstrategic assets in the face of a slumping Chinese property market.
: 400;">: A Japanese delegation to China led by former speaker of the House of Representatives Kono Yohei to promote economic relations with Japan expresses concerns about the safety of Japanese nationals engaged in bilateral economic interactions.
: 400;">: A Chinese assistant on a Japanese school bus who intervened to protect a Japanese mother and her child from a knife attack dies of wounds she received.
: 400;">: A joint statement following the inaugural meeting of the commerce and industry ministers of Japan, South Korea, and the US voices “concerns over the weaponization of economic dependencies on certain supply sources for strategic goods,” apparently with China in mind.
: 400;">: Citing media reports that the Japanese Cabinet has issued decrees to expand the continental shelf of the Ogasawara Plateau, which is located on the east side of the Father Island in the Ogasawara Islands, by 120,000 sq. km., a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson protests the move as contravening the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and international practice.
: 400;">: After a hiatus of over four years, negotiations for the China-Japan-South Korea Free Trade Agreement resume, with the focus on a higher level of liberalization that goes beyond the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement, particularly in areas such as automobiles and key components.
: 400;">: DM Kihara announces that the ASDF will hold joint drills with the German, French, and Spanish air forces from July 19-25 for the purpose of deepening cooperative ties to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific.
: 400;">: Chinese national security officials visit the 87-year-old mother of Osaka-based Japanese citizen Liu Yanzhi at the family home in Hunan to demand that Liu not write unpatriotic books. Liu’s book Fushi no Bomeisha (Immortal Emigré), published at the end of May, discusses 10 intellectuals in and outside of China.
: 400;">: According to the Japan Coast Guard’s regional headquarters in Naha, two Haijing Chinese Coast Guard vessels enter what Japan considers its territorial waters off the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands for the fourth consecutive day. As they approach, a Japanese fishing JCG warn the vessels to leave.
: 400;">: Interviewed by Nikkei in Washington, commandant of the US marine corps Gen. Eric Smith says that the new Marine Littoral Regiment founded in November is meant to come to the defense of Japan’s remote islands quickly in the event of an attack and also to protect the Philippines and South Korea.
: 400;">: Japan imposes trade restrictions on China-based companies as part of a fresh round of sanctions against individuals and groups supporting Russia’s war on Ukraine. The restrictions also apply to firms in India, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.
: 400;">: Responding to the Japanese foreign ministry’s statement of serious concern over repeated actions that obstruct freedom of navigation and increase regional tensions, a spokesperson for China’s embassy in Japan says that Japan is not a party to the South China Sea issue and has no right to intervene in China-Philippines maritime matters.
: 400;">: Due to a significant drop in sales due to the rise of low-priced electric vehicles in China, Nissan is shutting down its car plant in the city of Changzhou, Jiangsu province, one of eight plants that it operates under its joint venture with China’s Dongfeng Motor.
: 400;">: Speaking at a press conference for a Japan Hong Kong Democracy Summit, exiled Hong Kong activists call for Japanese support against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s transnational repression. Activist Finn Lau described having a bounty of a million Hong Kong dollars placed on him. Among the Diet members attending was former defense minister Nakatani Gen, who pledged to urge his government to send firm messages to Hong Kong, demanding human rights be protected.
: 400;">: In a survey conducted by Reuters from June 5-14, 61% of Japanese companies see no need for their government to follow the US in raising tariffs on Chinese imports, saying excessive production capacity in China’s industrial sector does not affect them; about 53% replied that China’s excessive production capacity had little to no impact on their business.
: 400;">: Noting the surprise victory of the LDP in Okinawan elections despite strong opposition to the presence of US bases on the island, Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post suggests that Okinawans have been rethinking their views in response to China ramping up its pressure on Taiwan.
: 400;">: As the regional security environment becomes more severe amid China’s growing military assertiveness, Kishida and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon effectively agree on a pact to enhance classified information sharing, express concern over the situation in the South China Sea, and affirm the significance of working together to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific, a vision advocated by Japan in a veiled bid to counter China.
: 400;">: Immigration consultants and analysts observe a sharp increase in inquiries from Chinese people, both rich and middle class, looking to move to Japan.
: 400;">: Referencing a report published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute saying that Beijing is increasing its nuclear arsenal faster than any other country, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi expresses worry about the “rapid and unclear” expansion.
: 400;">: A task force member for a comprehensive review of renewable energy regulations resigns after she carelessly submitted a document containing digital data from China’s state-run power company, State Grid Corporation of China, to the Cabinet Office’s discussion forum on Japanese energy policy. This raised suspicions that Japan’s energy policy might be distorted by China’s intentions.
: 400;">: Japan’s Panasonic plans to adopt China’s minimalist approach to designing consumer electronics as it struggles to fend off challenges from Chinese rivals such as Haier Group and the Midea Group, particularly in Southeast Asia.
: 400;">: At least 50% of Japan’s exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment went to China for a third straight quarter in the three months through March, amid an apparent surge in demand for less advanced gear spurred by US-led trade restrictions.
: 400;">: China Coast Guard harassment of a Japanese surveillance vessel near the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands earlier this year included jamming the frequencies of some surveillance drones.
: 400;">: Cabinet office revises earlier 2.0% decline in GDP to 1.8% in the first quarter of 2014. Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi expects a moderate improvement in economic output in Q2.
: 400;">: To improve its ability to deal with China’s increasingly hegemonic behavior in the East China Sea including the area around the Senkaku Islands, the Japan Coast Guard will construct its largest-ever multipurpose patrol vessel, to function as an offshore base capable of carrying a number of small boats and to deter incursions onto the islands.
: 400;">: Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition against remarks made by military officials from Japan, the US, and South Korea to criticize China on issues regarding South China Sea and Taiwan.
: 400;">: Security cameras at the Yasukuni Shrine show a Chinese man spray painting “toilet” in English on the stone pillar bearing the name of the shrine and urinating against it.
: 400;">: Japanese government names prefectures mainly in the Kyushu region as planned shelters for residents of five municipalities of the Sakishima Islands in the event of a Taiwan contingency.
: 400;">: Global Times accuses Japan of cognitive warfare techniques to whitewash its irresponsible discharge of nuclear contaminated wastewater into the sea.
: 400;">: Public reporting on the first meeting between Defense Minister Kihara Minoru and Chinese counterpart Dong Jun on the sidelines of the Shangri-La forum in Singapore indicated little.
: 400;">: LDP Secretary General Motegi Toshimitsu and Liu Jianchao, head of the CCP’s International Liaison Department, agree to restart a forum for exchange between the Japanese and Chinese ruling parties suspended after 2018.
: 400;">: Citing unnamed diplomatic sources, Yomiuri reports that Japan refused to agree to China’s demand that the trilateral summit’s joint declaration include the term “industrial chains” as an area in which to strengthen cooperation, believing that the expression reflects China’s attempt to dominate the global market in key industrial sectors.
: 400;">: Meeting with Kishida in Tokyo, Liu Jianchao, head of the CCP’s international department, admonishes Japan to abide by the “one China principle” and “earnestly” maintain a political foundation for its bilateral relations with China.
: 400;">: Slowdown in China’s economy is affecting Japanese retail giant Uniqlo, with its parent company Fast Retailing announcing that it was cutting back its plans to open 80 new stores to 55. It may shut some locations and do more with ecommerce and livestream commerce, the latter becoming an increasingly popular form of shopping on Chinese social media apps.
: 400;">: ASDF fighters are scrambled when a Chinese military reconnaissance and strike unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the W-10 flies into Japan’s Air Defense Identification Zone over the East China Sea. The drone did not intrude into Japanese territorial airspace. Four types of Chinese UAVs have been making flights but this is the first time a WL-10 has been confirmed.
: 400;">: Marking the 158th consecutive day since Dec. 22, 2023 that Chinese coast guard vessels have entered Japan’s contiguous waters, the longest period on record, four vessels sail inside Japan’s contiguous zone approximately 22 km outside its territorial waters.
: 400;">: Trilateral summit pledged that China, Japan, and Korea would cooperate on: people-to-people exchanges; sustainable development including through climate change response; economic cooperation and trade; public health and aging societies; science, technology and digital transformation; and disaster relief and safety.
: 400;">: GSDF holds the Fuji Firepower Exercise 2024, its largest-scale annual live ammunition drill, in which 2,100 personnel practice responses against unnamed enemy forces landing on a remote Japanese island.
: 400;">: During a meeting of a consultative expert group set up by the two governments China demands that Japan expand the scope of its environmental assessment around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
: 400;">: Speaking with Premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of a trilateral summit in Seoul, Kishida asks for an immediate lifting of its ban on Japanese seafood products and conveys Japan’s “serious concern” over China’s recent military expansion, emphasizing that Tokyo believes stability in the Taiwan Strait is “crucial” not only for the region but also for the international community.
: 400;">: An editorial in Asahi, normally sympathetic to China, states “Beijing’s saber-rattling in a belligerent reaction to the newly inaugurated Taiwanese president’s speech is completely off the rails.
: 400;">: Unnamed diplomats interviewed by Reuters have low expectations that the first trilateral summit among China, Japan, and South Korea and hosted by Seoul can go beyond surface-level cordiality, though two anonymous Japanese foreign ministry officials said that the resumption of the summit after a long gap—since 2019—was important for optics.
: 400;">: Meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in Tokyo, Kishida expresses willingness to strengthen bilateral cooperation on maritime security in view of China’s hegemonic moves in the South China Sea.
: 400;">: Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa’s strong protest against Chinese ambassador’s (see above May 21) remark that “the Japanese people will be dragged into the flames if Japan gets involved in any attempt to divide China” is widely reported in both Japanese and international media.
: 400;">: Yomiuri reports that Taiwan’s newly inaugurated President Lai Ching-te showed the importance he places on Japan on Monday by lunching with a Japanese nonpartisan group and meeting with various other guests from Japan immediately after taking office.
: 400;">: Asahi editorializes that Xi Jinping rethink his aggressive, unyielding policy toward Taiwan, which lacks tolerance and flexibility, in light of the mutual benefits.
: 400;">: Ambassador to China Kanasugi Kenji holds talks with Anhui Gov. Wang Qingxian during his visit to the province, expressing hopes of enhancing the two countries’ ties in culture and youth exchange as well as improving the business environment for Japanese-affiliated companies and increasing flows of people.
: 400;">: According to a Japanese source based in China, about 60 governors and mayors in Japan visited China in the Japanese fiscal year that ended in March. China visits by prefectural and municipal heads became active around last July and are expected to remain robust.
: 400;">: Jiji reports that while state-level exchanges remain almost halted local government leaders of Japan and China are actively interacting with each other.
: 400;">: Hoping to increase Japan’s cyber defense capabilities to a level on par with North American and European countries by authorizing the government to access an attacker’s server to neutralize their attack as well as other actions, the LDP begins discussions on enabling the government to conduct active cyber defense.
: 400;">: US State Department officer is reported to be deployed to the embassy in Tokyo to monitor problematic behavior of China and consider countermeasures.
: 400;">: Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence (HKMCD) will be converted into the Hong Kong Museum of the War of Resistance & Coastal Defence on Sept. 3,the date marking victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931-45).
: 400;">: To encourage enlistment, the MSDF will be providing global internet access to its personnel while deployed at sea. Previously, limited satellite connection times restricted crew members to sending or receiving emails, with pre-approved contacts only, twice a day for brief periods.
: 400;">: Although Yonaguni Island’s 1,500 residents voted in favor of hosting an SDF base in 2015 Ambassador Rahm Emanuel’s visit to the island—the first US ambassador to do so—arouses concerns on plans to expand the base and deploy surface-to-air missiles as a deterrent to any Chinese designs on Japan’s vulnerable outlying islands.
: 400;">: Yuan Keqin, a Chinese national who taught at Hokkaido University of Education until detained by China in 2019, is sentenced to six years in prison for violating the PRC’s anti-espionage law.
: 400;">: Cabinet office discloses that Japan’s economy shrank at an annualized rate of 2%, or 0.5% on a nonannualized basis, in January-March in inflation-adjusted real terms, the first drop in two quarters.
: 400;">: Yomiuri editorializes against the SDFs’ inadequate security, which allowed a drone to intrude into a military base and take aerial footage close to the deck of a destroyer.
: 400;">: Reports state that Japanese government will send the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) and coast guard to the Marshall Islands to help improve its coast guard’s capabilities through joint drills and other activities.
: 400;">: Japanese intelligence agency obtains a document from a Shanghai-based tech company with ties to the Chinese government that it suspects of developing a system to manipulate public opinion via accounts on the X social media platform, believing that it is connected with China’s activities to manipulate public opinion overseas.
: 400;">: With multipartisan support, the Diet approves legislation restricting access to economic security information will require government officials, company employees and others to undergo background checks to obtain government clearance to handle sensitive information with leaks punishable by up to five years in prison or a maximum fine of 5 million yen.
: 400;">: Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi Yoshimasa announces with no further details the government’s intention to set up an expert panel to begin full-fledged deliberations on the introduction of “active cyber defense” to prevent serious cyber-attacks by infiltrating the attacking party’s servers.
: 400;">: Chinese milk tea brand Xiang Piao Piao sees a 400% surge on its live streaming sales in China after a netizen discovered that MECO fruit tea, a Xiang Piao Piao brand, sells products in a store in Japan with slogans on their cup sleeves showing “the ocean is not Japan’s sewer” and “0.1% of the land pollutes 70% of the ocean.”
: 400;">: A joint statement by the defense chiefs of Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and the US in Honolulu expresses serious concern over China’s “repeated obstruction of … freedom of navigation” in the South China Sea.
: 400;">: Aimed at reining in China’s aggressive maritime expansion, the Japanese government announces it will provide Sri Lanka with a vessel and sonar system worth about ¥1 billion ($6.6 million).
: 400;">: South China Morning Post describes Foreign Minister Kamikawa’s 10-day tour to Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, and Nepal as Japan selling itself as Global South’s China counterweight.
: 400;">: Defense chiefs from the US, Australia, Japan, and the Philippines meet in Hawaii for their second-ever joint meeting and vowed to deepen cooperation amid concerns about China’s operations in the South China Sea. The meeting comes after the four countries last month held their first joint naval exercises in the South China Sea.
: 400;">: Prime Minister Kishida sends a video message to a meeting of people in favor of revising the constitution on the Constitution Day holiday, saying that “amending the constitution is increasingly becoming an imminent and important issue.” Yomiuri editorializes in favor of the revision, saying that in light of the “extremely deteriorated security environment, in-depth discussions of Article 9 are also essential” and citing the paper’s survey indicating that 63% of respondents were positive about constitutional revision. Asahi opposes revision, saying that although preparing for security emergencies is obviously important protecting values such as the freedom and human rights advocated by the constitution, and preventing war should be the foremost priority.