Russia firmly opposes Japan's accelerated re-militarization efforts; Foreign Ministry: China and Russia share a highly consistent stance on Japan-related issues

On February 3rd, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian held a routine press conference. A reporter asked about the recent strategic communication between Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Director of the Central Foreign Affairs Office, and Sergey Shoigu, Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. Shoigu stated that Russia firmly opposes Japan’s accelerated re-militarization ambitions. What is China’s comment on this? Lin Jian said that China and Russia have a high degree of consensus on issues related to Japan. Japan’s accelerated re-militarization threatens regional peace and stability, and the international community and regional countries are highly alert to this. Regarding Japan’s accelerated re-militarization, we need to highlight the following basic facts. First, documents with international legal effect such as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Declaration, and Japan’s surrender document clearly stipulate Japan’s international obligations, and Japan’s constitution also strictly limits military forces, the right to war, and the right to engage in war. Second, Japan has never fully severed its militarist past since the war; the Yasukuni Shrine still enshrines 14 Class A war criminals, and Japanese right-wing forces attempt to downplay and romanticize the history of aggression through modifications of history textbooks and other means. Third, Japan’s steps to expand and strengthen its military are accelerating; Japan’s defense budget has increased for 14 consecutive years, reaching 58 billion USD, with an increase of over 60% in the past five years, and defense spending as a percentage of GDP has reached 2%. (The Paper)