Shinzo Abe says Chinese invasion of Taiwan could pose severe threat to Japan-US alliance

On Wednesday, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe warned that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would pose a severe threat to Japan's security and the Japan-United States alliance, and urged China to think twice before initiating any military action. Delivering an online speech on Taiwan-Japan relations, Abe stated that an armed invasion of Taiwan would surely pose a major threat to Japan, given its proximity to Taiwan. "A Taiwanese emergency will be a crisis for Japan and the Japan-US alliance and this clear stance should not be misunderstood by Chinese President Xi Jinping," Abe was quoted as saying by Central News Agency (CNA). He was speaking at the Institute for National Policy Research in Taipei.

Abe urged the democratic world to unite in order to prevent a Chinese invasion by persuading Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party against choosing the wrong path. He said that a military operation against Taiwan would be "economic suicide" for China despite the fact that it is one of the world's most powerful economies. Besides, it would also have a substantial impact on the global economy due to China's tight economic and trading relations with the rest of the world, he added. 

Abe calls for maintaining cross-Taiwan Strait peace

Abe also emphasized that maintaining cross-Taiwan Strait peace is in the best interests of all parties involved. Recent military exercises conducted by Beijing in the South China Sea, as well as repeated sorties of military aircraft in Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), have fueled fears of a possible Chinese invasion. However, some analysts believe that the sorties are meant to send a political message to the US and other countries, including Taiwan, to not take measures that symbolically express support for a sovereign Taiwan. Meanwhile, the former Japanese prime minister also expressed his support for Taiwan's attempt to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a Tokyo-led international trade bloc. 

It is worth mentioning here that on Monday, November 29, Taiwan's Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng remarked that recent events in the Taiwan Strait have aggravated the cross-strait situation. Speaking to reporters before a Parliamentary meeting, he had stated that China's frequent ADIZ invasions have made the cross-strait situation extremely tense in recent days. He further claimed that China's continued incursions are nothing more than a strategy to progressively deplete Taiwan's military's energy, reported Taiwan News citing CNA. 

Image: AP