At the recent Shangri-La Dialogue, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi delivered a blunt rebuttal to Meng Xiangqing, a professor at China¡¯s PLA National Defense University. Meng had used his platform to sharply lambast Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi¡¯s administration, accusing Tokyo of resurrecting a ¡°new type of militarism.¡± Koizumi countered forcefully, stating that the true source of anxiety in the Indo-Pacific is China itself, pointing to Beijing¡¯s expanding nuclear arsenal and unprecedented military build-up.
Noting the absence of China¡¯s defense minister, Koizumi called for bilateral security talks, directly confronting a coordinated effort by the Chinese delegation to isolate Tokyo.
On the surface, the forum was a diplomatic victory for Japan. Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro backed Koizumi, while officials from the U.S., Australia, Vietnam, the U.K., France and Germany voiced shared concerns over China¡¯s coercive policies. In Japan, public opinion took immense satisfaction in seeing Koizumi secure such broad international solidarity, leaving the Chinese delegation isolated. Yet, beneath this veneer of triumph lies a dangerous, carefully laid pitfall.
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