The Japanese government has denied reports that US President Donald Trump advised Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to avoid provoking China over Taiwan, Bloomberg reports, according to UNN.
Details
The Wall Street Journal reported that during their conversation this week, Trump advised Takaichi not to provoke Beijing on the issue of Taiwan's sovereignty, citing unnamed Japanese officials and a US representative informed about the phone call. The advice was delicate, and the US president did not pressure Takaichi to retract her words, the report said.
"The article you mentioned contains a claim that President Trump advised not to provoke the Chinese government regarding Taiwan's sovereignty, but there is no such fact," said Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara at a regular press conference on Thursday afternoon, responding to a question about the report.
Kihara added that the government had contacted the WSJ with an inquiry about the article. While denying the content of the report, the government official did not provide further details about what Trump and Takaichi discussed during their phone call earlier this week.
Reuters also reported on Thursday that Trump had asked Takaichi not to escalate the conflict with China during talks this week, citing sources familiar with the situation. Kihara was not asked about this Reuters report.
"I cannot comment in more detail on foreign policy exchanges," Kihara said at a morning press briefing on Thursday. During the phone call, "the two leaders confirmed close cooperation between the US and Japan."
Between Kihara's morning and afternoon press briefings, a Japanese government official also denied the information, without providing details on what exactly was discussed during the conversation.
On Thursday, Kihara reiterated that during their conversation, Trump said that Takaichi was a very close friend of his and that she could call him anytime. Takaichi had previously stated that Trump also discussed his conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping, without going into details.
Takaichi did not retract her statements of November 7, in which she linked Japan's security to the situation around Taiwan, which was the first such instance for a sitting prime minister of the country. At the time, she stated that an attack on Taiwan could be considered a "situation that threatens the existence" of Japan.
As the publication notes, this classification is important because it would provide Japan with a legal basis to deploy its armed forces to protect friendly countries, such as the United States, its most important security ally. However, the current conflict could complicate US efforts to maintain a trade truce with Beijing, the publication writes.
On Wednesday, Takaichi stated that she had no intention of going into details regarding Taiwan, and reaffirmed the government's position on responding to regional circumstances, namely, that in the event of any specific incident, Japan would make decisions taking into account all relevant information. China continues to demand that Takaichi retract her initial statements regarding Taiwan.
Meanwhile, the situation is escalating as China continues to unleash a torrent of criticism and retaliatory measures, the publication writes. Beijing has warned tourists against visiting Japan, suspended seafood imports, and frozen film production permits.
In addition to the likely reduction in the flow of Chinese tourists to Japan, the dispute also threatens to derail what was supposed to be a breakthrough year for anime in the world's second-largest film market, the publication notes.
According to Kyodo News, registered guests from Japan and Japanese media journalists will also be denied entry to an air show to be held later this week in Guangdong province in southern China.