China Thursday accused Japan of deliberately exaggerating Beijing's military threat, underlining the suspicion with which Asia's two biggest economies view each other. ...
Foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu obliquely warned Tokyo not to stray from its longstanding defense posture and, in comments on the ministry website (http://www.mfa.gov.cn), criticized "irresponsible comments" in the white paper. ...
Ma said: "We hope that Japan will use history as a guide, and earnestly reflect on its defense policies, and do more to enhance mutual trust with its neighbors."
Defense ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng said Japan was deliberately exaggerating the 'China threat' and acting out of ulterior motives, according to the ministry's website (http://www.mod.gov.cn).
Bashing Japan with the World War II stick, warning them not to beef up their own military, and accusing Japan of misleading on China's military power. Gosh, just what did Japan say in their 2011 defense white paper?
Well, in the foreword they do step out on a ledge with this assessment:
Looking at the region surrounding Japan, the nuclear and missile problems of North Korea still require due caution. Tensions have increased on the Korean Peninsula due to such incidents as the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island. Furthermore, China continues to rapidly expand and modernize its military forces and the activities that it conducts in the waters surrounding Japan are growing larger in scale and more intense. Russia also continues to intensify the level of its military activities. [Emphasis added]
Wow. Sandwiched between observations on North Korea and Russia, Japan notes the obvious about China. That's an earful of invective, huh? China likes to boast of its growing military power yet gets all prickly when somebody notices it?
The Middle Kingdom sure knows how to make friends.
UPDATE: Great minds think alike, it seems. Mad Minerva gives a shout out to alert me to the report--and China's tiresome reaction.
