Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has forcefully rejected Chinese accusations that Tokyo is embracing a dangerous new militarism, while turning the argument around to highlight what he described as China's rapid and opaque military expansion. Speaking on Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue — Asia's premier annual defence forum, held in Singapore and attended by security officials and experts from roughly 45 countries — Koizumi delivered a pointed rebuttal without naming China directly. "Think about it. There is a country that has a huge arsenal of nuclear weapons and strategic bombers," he said. "Japan has neither of such weapons. And yet, Japan is labelled 'new militarism'. Isn't it strange?"

The remarks come amid a sustained diplomatic chill between the two neighbouring powers. Tensions reached a new low after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in November that a hypothetical Chinese military assault on Taiwan — the self-governed island that Beijing claims as its own territory — could prompt a Japanese military response. China's foreign ministry responded in May by calling on Asia-Pacific nations to "jointly resist the reckless actions of Japan's neo-militarism." At the Singapore forum, Chinese delegate Major General Meng Xiangqing went further, questioning whether a country that had "not thoroughly eradicated the toxic legacy of militarism" was qualified to speak about regional defence cooperation.

Koizumi pushed back by pointing to Japan's post-war record, citing its consistent adherence to international law and the United Nations Charter since 1945. He acknowledged that Japan is deepening its defence capabilities — including in artificial intelligence, uncrewed systems, and cyber and space defence — but stressed this was being done with "a high degree of transparency," in contrast to China's military build-up, which he said lacked sufficient openness. In April, Tokyo unveiled its most significant overhaul of defence export rules in decades, lifting long-standing restrictions to allow overseas sales of warships, missiles and other weapons.

The forum itself highlighted the diplomatic distance between Tokyo and Beijing. For the second consecutive year, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun did not attend, forgoing the chance to meet counterparts on the sidelines. Koizumi said he was "sad" not to have had the opportunity for talks, but stressed that Japan "keeps the door open" to engagement. "We seek a region that can stand against coercion. We seek a region that is not misled by falsehoods," he said.

The exchange reflects a broader regional debate about the pace and intent of Japan's security transformation. Under US encouragement, Tokyo has been steadily moving away from the strictly pacifist defence posture it adopted after World War Two, raising alarm in Beijing and among some other Asian nations with historical grievances against Japan, while finding growing support among countries concerned about Chinese military assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.