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Beijing adds 40 firms
China imposed new export controls on 40 Japanese entities as tensions with Tokyo rose, with China’s Commerce Ministry saying the firms were contributing to the country’s “remilitarization.”
The Commerce Ministry said 20 entities, including Mitsui E&S which makes engines and other equipment for ships, were added to a watch list for dual-use items, and Chinese companies exporting to these firms must apply for special licenses and submit risk assessment reports and written pledges.
The ministry also said another 20 Japanese entities that had been put on a watch list in February were placed on a control list, meaning both Chinese and foreign exporters are banned from selling them dual-use items made in China.
China’s Commerce Ministry statement said, “China’s measures are entirely justified, reasonable and lawful.”
The controls come as Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force announced it deployed a Type-12 missile launcher on Minamitorishima, described as an apparent response to China’s growing activity expanding into the Pacific.
Tokyo weighs countermeasures
ThePrint said China added 20 organizations to its control list, imposing a general ban on Chinese exports that can be used for both commercial and military purposes, and it named targets including the state-run National Institute for Defense Studies and affiliates of Mitsubishi Electric Corp.
In a parallel measure, ThePrint said Beijing placed another 20 entities on its monitor list, including shipbuilder Mitsui E&S Co. and Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd., subjecting them to stricter scrutiny for importing dual-use items from China.
TRT World reported that the ministry said the new additions “have participated in enhancing Japan's military capabilities,” and it added that the export curbs were implemented “for the purpose of safeguarding national security and interests.”
TRT World also said another 20 Japanese entities were added to a watchlist, requiring exporters to submit risk assessments and guarantees that dual-use items will not enhance Japanese military strength prior to making shipments.
ThePrint tied the latest escalation to comments on Taiwan by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi last year, when she suggested Tokyo could deploy its military if China attempts to seize Taiwan.
Sea, missiles, and retaliation
Japan Today said relations between Beijing and Tokyo have been increasingly tense since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi last year implied Japan could intervene if China used military force against Taiwan, an island democracy China claims as its own.
Japan Today added that Takaichi’s government is reinforcing Japan with more offensive capabilities, including deploying longer-range missiles on remote islands and promoting lethal weapons exports now allowed under a new policy, and it said Japan will revise its defense and security documents by December.
In a separate development reported by روزنامه دنیای اقتصاد, Kyodo News said the Chinese government informed Japan it would suspend imports of Japanese seafood products, and it said Mao Ning warned of consequences if Japan did not retract remarks by Sanae Takai about an emergency regarding Taiwan.
روزنامه دنیای اقتصاد quoted Mao Ning saying, “otherwise China will be forced to take further measures and all consequences will be borne by Japan.”
El País reported that Japan’s Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi rejected accusations that Tokyo is reviving its militarist past, while it said Beijing demanded Takaichi apologize and retract after her Parliament remarks that a conflict in the Taiwan Strait could threaten Japan’s survival.
