China evokes spectre of WWII-era Japan, calls on UK, France to take its side in diplomatic row

There is a need to safeguard the outcomes of World War Two, China's foreign minister Wang Yi said.

December 03, 2025, 12:41 PM

China has stepped up its diplomatic offensive against Japan by attempting to rally its former European World War Two allies UK and France to its side.

In talks with British and French officials last week, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi recalled Imperial Japan's aggression during the Second World War, The New York Times reported.

Alluding to the Allied Powers' victory over Imperial Japan, he further urged both countries to rally to China's side once again amidst their ongoing rift with Japan, which began on Nov. 7 when Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi started a "row" with Beijing following remarks she made in parliament.

Rift with Japan

Takaichi said an attack on Taiwan by the Chinese could amount to a "survival-threatening situation" and trigger a military response from Tokyo, which Beijing, which maintains that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, has slammed as "erroneous" and "blatant provocations".

This resulted in protests and commercial repercussions from the Chinese, such as advising its citizens not to visit Japan for tourism and imposing a ban on Japanese seafood.

China has also threatened "further consequences" on Japan should Takaichi not retract her statement, which she has refused to to date.

Looking for sympathetic onlookers

In addition, China has attempted to draw other major powers to its side in recent months.

On Nov. 21, China's Permanent Representative to the UN Fu Cong sent a letter to the United Nations (UN) secretary-general António Guterres accusing Takaichi of violating international law by challenging China's national interests.

He further warned that his country will exercise their right to self-defend if Japan attempted to intervene militarily in Taiwan.

In a Nov. 24 call with U.S. President Donald Trump, China's president Xi Jinping also asserted his country's claim to Taiwan, telling his American counterpart that the island's return to China is an "integral part of the postwar international order".

Xi has not ruled out the use of force with regards to the self-governing island.

Citing China and the U.S.'s alliance in fighting fascism and militarism in the Second World War, he again urged the U.S. to join them in jointly safeguarding the victorious outcome of the war.

Europe's stances

In a meeting with UK's foreign security adviser Jonathan Powell in Beijing on Nov. 27, and over a phone call with France's presidential foreign policy adviser Emmanuel Bonne on Nov. 28, Wang called on both countries to abide by China's one-China policy and "safeguard the outcomes" of World War Two, NYT reported.

"Provocative remarks on Taiwan by the incumbent Japanese leader are blatantly turning back the wheel of history and infringe on China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," Wang reportedly said.

To date, both Britain and France do not officially recognise Taiwan as a country, but support the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and oppose the use of force by China to claim Taiwan, or threaten to do so.

However, China's other European ally Russia appears to agree with the country's stance.

Wang also held a meeting with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov in Beijing on Dec. 2, where both leaders jointly called for the safeguarding of World War Two outcomes, Chinese state media Xinhua reported.

Both countries should cooperate in resisting Japan's "far right" forces, Wang said.

Lavrov also reaffirmed Russia' commitment to China's one-China principle, supporting China's stance on their claim to Taiwan.