Japan will stand up to China, says PM Shinzo Abe

[JayAtl]

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says other countries want Japan to adopt a more assertive leadership role in Asia to counter the growing power of China.

Mr Abe told the Wall Street Journal there were "concerns that China was trying to change the status quo by force, rather than by the rule of law".

Relations between China and Japan have been strained over recent years.

China said on Saturday that if Japan shot down Chinese drones, this would be considered "an act of war" by Beijing.

The statement was referring to reports that Mr Abe had approved defence plans that envisaged using air force planes to shoot down unmanned Chinese aircraft in Japanese airspace.

Another contentious issue between the two countries is the dispute over a group of islands.

The islands, in the East China Sea, are controlled by Tokyo, but claimed by Beijing.

But analysts say the nations' rivalry reflects the power shift created by China's meteoric economic and diplomatic rise while Japan has been mired in a two-decade economic slump.

China has warned against Japanese nationalism in a region where Japan's colonial expansionism is still bitterly remembered.

'Act of war'
In the interview, Mr Abe said he had realised that "Japan is expected to exert leadership not just on the economic front, but also in the field of security in the Asia-Pacific".

He promised policies to counter Japan's waning influence.

Other countries wanted Japan to stand up to China, Mr Abe said without naming any.

"There are concerns that China is attempting to change the status quo by force, rather than by rule of law. But if China opts to take that path, then it won't be able to emerge peacefully," Mr Abe says.

"So it shouldn't take that path, and many nations expect Japan to strongly express that view. And they hope that as a result, China will take responsible action in the international community."

The interview comes days after Mr Abe was reported to approved defence plans to intercept and shoot down foreign unmanned aircraft that ignore warnings to leave Japanese airspace.

On Saturday, China's defence ministry responded saying: "If Japan does resort to enforcement measures like shooting down aircraft, that is a serious provocation to us, an act of war.

"We will undertake decisive action to strike back, with every consequence borne by the side that caused the trouble," spokesman Geng Yansheng said on the ministry's website.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24684683

 

[armchairPrivate]

^^^Abe is too short to stand up to anyone.

Japanese were commonly called daicon radish - for being short.

 

[GDan]

^^^Abe is too short to stand up to anyone.

Japanese were commonly called daicon radish - for being short.

He's taller than Putin.

 

[armchairPrivate]

^^^ In platform shoes.

 

[Jade]

India is with Japan on this

 

[帅的一匹]

^^^Abe is too short to stand up to anyone.

Japanese were commonly called daicon radish - for being short.

India is with Japan on this

Your country sucks, don't act stupid again.

 

[Jade]

Your country sucks, don't act stupid again.

Now don't force me to open my mouth about your country

 

[SarthakGanguly]

A resurgent Japan, eh? Best wishes

 

[Kill-The-Enemy]

Japan won't stand a chance unless it wants to see another Hiroshima-Nagasaki

 

[vostok]

Personally, I am concerned about the aggressive rhetoric of the Japanese Prime-Minister. Japanese - fanatical guys, although for 70 years of occupation, the Americans decently washed their brains - I'm sure that to make Nazis of them is simple. The value of the Japanese economy in the world will fall - and militarization will grow. I do not know what the outcome of this process.

 

[Shardul.....the lion]

We are with you....

If China is agressive bully then countries like India, Japan and Vietnam need to stand against bullying...

While if china is geniune in friendship then we welcome it too.. but it needs to show in action like stopping issuing stapled visas to Arunachalis and stopping arming Pakistan

 

[bolo]

Of course Abe will stand up to China...from the sidelines watching NHK. Of course indians will stand with japan on this one...spiritually.

 

[Gandhi G in da house]

On topic, I really hope Japan re-militarises and also acquires nuclear weapons. They deserve it. People should not fear them misusing it now. Their society today is one of the most advanced and educated in the world. They will be much more responsible than they were during the Second World War.

 

[suntzu]

The US policy of encircling China by using the US stooges like India and Japan is bound to fail, China is to big and powerful to contain it is better india and japan focus on trade and do business like good boys or they will suffer economically unless they willing to make their people suffer hardships for the United States something only idiots would do.

 

[tranquilium]

What could be more primitive and inferior than the Chinese who know for running away, leaving their women behind for the Japanese.

They went to Taiwan. You are dealing with the Chinese that defeated a 16 nation UN army in Korea. There is also the little scuffle in 1962, we all know how that turned out.

Japan's problem is that it is a small and minor nation. Chances of history allowed it to go beyond its normal state for a while, but in the end, thing will simply fade back to normal.