News - Middle East: Beijing has lodged formal complaints with Japan over its new annual defense white paper, which labeled China as its “greatest strategic challenge.”

Japan’s Defense Ministry on July 12 released its annual defense white paper, expressing “serious concern” over China’s alleged hardline external stance and increasing military activities.

The document accused Beijing of allegedly presenting “an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge to which Japan should respond with its comprehensive national power and in cooperation and collaboration with its ally, like-minded countries and others.” 

Tokyo even moved further in its allegations and resembled the situation to the current confrontation between Russia and Ukraine.

“Japan is facing the most and severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II. It cannot be ruled out that a serious situation similar to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine may occur in Indo-Pacific region in future, particularly in East Asia,” Japan’s white paper alleged.

On Thursday, the Chinese Defense Ministry responded to the Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, slamming it as being “full of clichés, which was nothing more than using China as an excuse to deceive the Japanese people, mislead the international community, and create excuses for its military buildup and expansion.”

The ministry also urged Tokyo to stop “smearing and accusing” China, and be prudent in its words and actions in the military and security fields.