More than 90 percent of Japanese believe Japan should prepare for a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a Nikkei poll released on Monday found.
On how to prepare for an invasion of Taiwan, 41 percent of respondents said Japan should improve its capability of responding to a conflict in Taiwan by revising its laws, while 50 percent said the country should prepare within the existing legal framework and 4 percent said preparations are not needed.
In addition, 56 percent of respondents approved of a proposal by the Liberal Democratic Party-led government to increase the defense budget to 1 percent of Japan’s GDP, while 31 percent disapproved, marking little change from a poll last month.
Photo: AFP
About 60 percent of respondents agreed with preserving a military capability to strike back at an enemy — twice as many as the 30 percent who opposed the notion.
Under current Japanese law, Japan may exercise the right to self-defense if it or a close ally, such as the US, came under military attack.
However, Tokyo lacks the legal authority to build up stockpiles or render other military assistance to its allies unless the emergency is formally recognized, Yoji Koda, former commander-in-chief of the Japanese Self-Defense Fleet, was cited as saying.
Russia amassed forces near the borders of Ukraine before invading, which suggests a similar military buildup would precede a military invasion of Taiwan, he said.
That Japan “has no law that allows the US military to temporarily stockpile huge amounts of fuel and ammunition during normal times” might impede Japan’s ability to provide logistical support for US operations throughout the Indo-Pacific region, he added.
The poll, conducted by Nikkei Research from Friday through Sunday by telephone among Japanese men and women aged 18 or older, drew 935 valid samples and had a response rate of 41.4 percent.
Three cases of Candida auris, a fungus that can cause a yeast infection known as candidiasis in humans, have been reported in Taiwan over the past few years, but they did not display drug resistance, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said yesterday. Lo made the statement at a news conference in Taipei, one day after the Washington Post reported that the potentially deadly fungus is spreading in US hospitals. The fungus was first discovered in Japan in 2009 and poses a danger to immunocompromised people, with an estimated mortality rate of 30 to 60 percent, Lo
‘DIRE’: Taiwan would not engage in ‘dollar diplomacy,’ the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, after China reportedly offered Honduras up to US$3 billion to establish relations The government yesterday recalled its ambassador to Honduras after the Central American nation sent its foreign minister to China, signaling that it would sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Suspicions concerning ties with Honduras are rife after Honduran President Xiomara Castro on Tuesday last week wrote on Twitter that her country would pursue diplomatic ties with China. Honduran Minister of Foreign Affairs Eduardo Enrique Reina traveled to China on Wednesday “to promote efforts for the establishment of diplomatic relations” on instructions from Castro, Reuters yesterday quoted Honduran presidential spokesman Ivis Alvarado as saying. The government “has decided to immediately recall the ambassador to Honduras
SWITCH TO BEIJING: The government severed diplomatic relations about an hour after Honduras announced the move, saying that no semi-official ties would be maintained Taiwan severed diplomatic ties with Honduras and ended all cooperation with the Central American country, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, about an hour and a half after the Honduran Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Twitter at 8am Taiwan time that the nation would cut its ties with Taiwan. Honduran President Xiomara Castro on Wednesday sent Honduran Minister of Foreign Affairs Eduardo Enrique Reina to Beijing to negotiate the establishment of diplomatic relations. She announced the plan on March 14 on Twitter. “To safeguard Taiwan’s sovereignty and dignity, Taiwan is terminating diplomatic ties with Honduras with immediate effect” after communication with
MEDIA, SOCIETY FOCUS: Doublethink Lab said that Beijing is trying to coerce countries that rely on China economically to pursue policies in its favor China has stronger influence over Taiwan’s media and society than any other country, the Taipei-based Doublethink Lab think tank said yesterday, as it announced its China Index gauging Beijing’s global influence. Taiwan ranked 11th overall among 82 countries assessed, but first in terms of social and media influence, Doublethink Lab chairman Puma Shen (沈伯洋) told a news conference in Taipei. More than 200 experts and academics participated in the project, including some highly influential figures, Shen said. The index collects information from countries worldwide to gauge China’s influence and assess how Chinese policies affect them, Shen said. In terms of Chinese
RSS