Japan – tempers grate as China threatens

A hawkish Japan has said publicly for the first time it would join the USA in defending Taiwan were China to invade in an irritated response to China’s expansionist policies in the region. The prospect of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan has long been regarded as the potential trigger for a superpower conflict. Most foreign governments, including Japan, acknowledge that Taiwan is a sovereign part of China but insist that reunification must take place without force, something Beijing refuses to