China has strongly pushed back against Japan's 2026 defense white paper, which describes China as an "unprecedented, greatest strategic challenge," calling it a pretext for military expansion. The rebuke comes as Japan has been locked in continuous friction with China since Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae's November 6 remark last year raising the possibility of intervention in a Taiwan contingency.

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Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Chen Xi. China has strongly pushed back against the content of Japan's recently published defense white paper. / Chinese Ministry of National Defense website

According to a report on the 5th by Global Times, a sister publication of the ruling party's official Global Times, Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Chen Xi responded to a reporter's question the previous day, saying, "Japan's latest defense white paper is filled with false claims, exaggerating regional security risks and stoking the so-called 'China threat theory.'"

He went on to argue, "This is a complete case of the pot calling the kettle black. It's nothing more than a pretext for Japan to loosen restrictions on expanding its military power," and stressed, "China expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to this." He also pointed out, "Under the guise of defense, the Japanese government is accelerating revisions to its three security documents, continuously increasing its defense budget, and massively strengthening its long-range strike capabilities."

He further claimed, "Japan is even framing the expansion of its defense industry as a driver of economic growth. It is trying to deeply embed military buildup and war preparation into its national institutions, economy and industry, and social discourse."

Spokesperson Chen also criticized Japan, saying, "The resurgence of Japan's new militarism poses a serious challenge to the postwar international order and constitutes a real threat to regional peace and stability," adding, "The Taiwan issue concerns China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and is directly tied to the political foundation of China-Japan relations. It is a red line that must not be crossed."

According to Beijing diplomatic sources on the 5th, Japan's government adopted its 2026 defense white paper at a Cabinet meeting the previous day. The white paper described China's foreign policy and military activities as matters that Japan and the international community must take seriously, characterizing them as an "unprecedented, greatest strategic challenge." It also claimed that China continues to increase its defense spending while accelerating the modernization of its nuclear weapons, missiles, naval vessels, and air power. The white paper also devoted significant attention to Chinese aircraft carrier activity in the Pacific, the situation in the Taiwan Strait, and China-Russia military cooperation.

In particular, the white paper stated that Chinese military activity around Taiwan is growing increasingly frequent, and assessed that the security environment surrounding Japan is now at its most severe and complex since the end of World War II. Given how forcefully China tends to react whenever the "China threat theory" comes up, it would almost be more surprising if Beijing hadn't pushed back this sharply — even if the white paper's content might otherwise seem to lean unusually anti-China.

                                                                                                          Hong Soon-do