Japan’s State Minister of Defense, Yasuhide Nakayama is calling on Japan and the US to protect Taiwan and its democracy as China and Russia pose threats to Taiwan. Nakayama was speaking at a virtual meeting with the US think tank, the Hudson Institute, on Monday.
Nakayama questioned Japan’s commitment to the “one China” policy, which recognizes China rather than Taiwan, and which dates back to the 1970s. He questioned whether Japan’s decision on this policy was correct and whether it will stand the test of time.
Nakayama said democratic countries should protect each other so Japan should protect Taiwan. He said Japan and Taiwan are geographically very close in proximity. He said if anything happens to Taiwan, Okinawa will be affected and there are many American soldiers and their families stationed there.
Nakayama said that there is a growing threat from China in the areas of space technology, missile buildup, cyberspace technology and nuclear power. Nakayama said the US needs to deter China and Russia. He said Xi Jinping’s leadership has been very aggressive and all countries should ‘wake up’ to China’s threat.