China Dials Up Pressure in Early Diplomatic Test of Japan’s Takaichi

China isn’t easing up in its early diplomatic test of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. State media threatened a barrage of major countermeasures over her comments on Taiwan. Yuyuantantian, a social media account linked to China’s state broadcaster, published a commentary warning that Beijing “has made full preparations for substantive retaliation.” Hours later, the People’s Liberation Army Daily reinforced that message in a commentary warning that if Japan’s military got involved in the Taiwan Strait “the entire country would risk becoming a battlefield.”

The reaction stems from comments Takaichi made earlier this month, when she suggested that any Chinese use of military force against Taiwan could be considered a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan — a classification that would provide a legal justification to support friendly countries that choose to respond.