Warship's slow passage deemed a deliberate, malicious provocation

The provocative action by Japan in the Taiwan Strait will elicit resolute and strong responses from China's People's Liberation Army, according to military affairs observers.

Song Zhongping, a retired PLA Rocket Force officer and now a military affairs commentator, said on Monday the fact that the JS Ikazuchi, a Murasame-class destroyer of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, spent almost 14 hours transiting the Taiwan Strait on Friday amounts to an obvious provocation.

"Considering the north-south length of the Taiwan Strait stands at merely around 370 kilometers, the extremely slow passage of the Japanese warship was in no sense 'normal navigation', but an intentional display of force and a malicious provocation. By sending wrong signals in the Taiwan Strait and emboldening 'Taiwan independence' elements, Japan will only court its own destruction.

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"The Ikazuchi is not an advanced modern warship; it is an obsolete vessel in the face of the PLA Navy. The Chinese military has sufficient capabilities to sink it, and we have exercised maximum restraint. But, if Japan's provocations continue to intensify, or other so-called allies of the United States persist in provocation, the PLA will not rule out taking resolute measures to resolve the issue," he said.

The Ministry of National Defense said on Friday that China has lodged a strong protest with Japan after the transit, calling the move "a deliberate provocation".

Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, the ministry's spokesman, said the Japanese vessel's passage sent a wrong signal to secessionist forces in Taiwan, and would only provoke stronger opposition from the Chinese people and reinforce the country's resolve to counter provocations.

He said the Chinese military remains on high alert and will take firm measures to counter any external interference.

Earlier on the same day, the Eastern Theater Command of the PLA also denounced the transit as it deployed naval and air assets to track and monitor the vessel throughout the process, ensuring effective control of the situation.

The Japanese warship transited the Strait on the same day as the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki 131 years ago, sparking outrage among netizens, as the treaty resulted in Taiwan being ceded to Japan, marking the beginning of a shared history of resistance against Japanese colonial occupation and the struggle for the restoration of Taiwan to China.

"The signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki left a deep national wound. The deliberate intrusion of the destroyer is an intentional provocation and a test of boundaries," a netizen said on his Weibo account.

The observer Song said that refraining from firing the first shot is not an immutable rule for the PLA. "Should China's national interests be violated, firing the first shot will become a viable option. In other words, once any country actually encroaches on China's national security, sovereignty and interests, such an act in itself means the other side has fired the first shot."

In that case, Song stressed, China will no longer hold back, and "the sword of justice" will be drawn to counter provocations from certain malicious countries, Japan in particular.

He said that Japanese militarism owes China a heavy historical debt and keeps provoking China in the present day. "The ultimate outcome will be that old scores and new wrongs will be settled together," he emphasized.

Wu Peixin, also a military affairs observer, said that Japan has been pushing for constitutional amendment and military expansion, and accelerating its pace of remilitarization. Its remarks on the Taiwan question and its vessel's transit of the Taiwan Strait are aimed at gradually breaking through the constraints of the post-war regime, seeking renewed military presence in the Taiwan Strait and even intervening in the Taiwan question by force.

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"China will never compromise on this matter, will never allow the history (of being humiliated and invaded by Japan) to repeat itself, and will leave no room for ambiguity on Japan's military intervention in the Taiwan Strait," he said.

Over the weekend, media outlets of the PLA sent clear warnings to Japan in the wake of the Japanese warship's transit through the Taiwan Strait, saying such provocative moves will incur "unbearable consequences".

An editorial published on the PLA's official WeChat account said that Japan has accelerated military deployment on its islands close to Taiwan, and is now stirring up new troubles by dispatching vessels through the Taiwan Strait.

"This once again lays bare the dangerous attempt of certain Japanese politicians to militarily interfere in the Taiwan question. Japan should see the situation clearly, act prudently, and halt its risky moves on the Taiwan question. If it persists in its wrongdoing and refuses to repent, it will only bring ruin upon itself and pay an unbearable price," it said.

Contact the writers at zhaolei@chinadaily.com.cn