In propaganda video, China threatens to nuke Japan after Japan vows to defend Taiwan

In propaganda video, China threatens to nuke Japan after Japan vows to defend Taiwan

Tuesday, July 20th 2021

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In this photo taken Feb. 10, 2020, and released by the Republic of China (ROC) Ministry of National Defense, a Taiwanese Air Force F-16 in foreground flies on the flank of a Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) H-6 bomber as it passes near Taiwan. (Republic of China (ROC) Ministry of National Defense via AP)

WASHINGTON (SBG) — In a now-deleted propaganda video, China threatened to nuke Japan following comments made by Japanese leaders vowing to defend Taiwan from Chinese invasion.

The nearly six-minute video, which was posted to the Chinese Communist Party-sanctioned channel Xigua, featured images and videos of Chinese war machines, such as tanks and fighter jets, edited into pictures of a devastated 1940s Japan following the World War II U.S. nuclear strikes on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

FILE - This Sept. 8, 1945 picture shows an allied correspondent standing in the rubble in front of the shell of a building that once was a movie theater in Hiroshima, Japan, a month after the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare was dropped by the U.S. on Monday, Aug. 6, 1945. A movement is growing worldwide to abolish nuclear weapons, encouraged by President Barack Obama's endorsement of that goal. But "realists" argue that more stability and peace must first be achieved in the world. (AP Photo/Stanley Troutman)

The video had 2 million views, according to Taiwan News, before being deleted. It has since been reposted on YouTube and partially on Twitter, where it was translated with English subtitles.

The video references Japan's defeat in World War II before promising "full-scale war" against the only country to have ever been nuked. The video also said there "will be no peace talks."

The video states:

When we liberate Taiwan, if Japan dares to intervene by force, even if it only deploys one soldier, one plane, and one ship, we will not only return reciprocal fire but also start a full-scale war against Japan. We will use nuclear bombs first. We will use nuclear bombs continuously until Japan declares unconditional surrender for the second time. What we want to target is Japan's ability to endure a war. A long as Japan realizes that it cannot afford to pay the price of war, it will not dare to rashly send troops to the Taiwan Strait.

Residents rest near a map of China near a shopping district in Beijing on Saturday, May 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

China then boasted about its 60 years of nuclear arms development before discussing the "Japan Exception Theory," suggesting that Japan become the exception to China's "no first use" nuclear weapons policy it declared in 1964.

In its annual defense white paper, Japan pointed to economic and technological tensions between the U.S. and China as a destabilizing factor in the region.

2021 Defense of Japan Pamphlet by Adam Forgie on Scribd

The paper stated:

As China rapidly enhances its military power, changes in the military power balance between the United States and China may possibly affect the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific region. It is necessary to pay greater attention to the military trends of the two countries in areas such as the South China Sea and Taiwan... China has further intensified military activities around Taiwan including Chinese aircrafts’ entering the southwestern airspace of Taiwan. In the meantime, the United States has demonstrated a clear stance of supporting Taiwan in military aspects, such as transits by U.S. vessels through the Taiwan Strait and weapon sales. Stabilizing the situation surrounding Taiwan is important for Japan’s security and the stability of the international community. Therefore, it is necessary that we pay close attention to the situation with a sense of crisis more than ever before.

People wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the coronavirus walk at the famed Shibuya scramble crosswalk in Tokyo, Monday evening, May 31, 2021. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

China's threat comes two weeks after comments made by Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso in which he urged the United States to join forces with Japan to defend Taiwan from Chinese invasion, according to The Japan Times. Aso said the best course for doing so was not through force, but rather dialogue.

“If a major incident happened (over Taiwan), it’s safe to say it would be related to a situation threatening the survival (of Japan)," Aso said in a speech on July 5, according to The Japan Times. "If that is the case, Japan and the U.S. must defend Taiwan together."

Aso is the first senior Japanese government official to lay out a clear scenario in which Japan would deploy its military to help defend another country in the region.

A Taiwan Navy honor guard captain adjusts team member's face mask during a launch ceremony for its first indigenous amphibious transport dock in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, Tuesday, April 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)

China answered back, saying Japan must "show respect for China's sovereignty," according to Sky News Australia.

I must stress that, Taiwan is part of China and the Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair," China Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Zhao Lijian said. "China never allows interference in the Taiwan question in any form by any country.

Taiwan is part of China's plan for reunification, according to Lijian. Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a speech earlier this month to mark the Chinese Communist Party's 100th anniversary, reinforced China's "unshakeable commitment" to reunification.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is seen on screen during a gala show ahead of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing on Monday, June 28, 2021. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Japan has long remained mum on the Taiwan issue, not wanting to upset neighboring China, but has recently embarked on a new, bolder approach to the situation. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga mentioned the Taiwan situation earlier this year in a joint statement with U.S. President Joe Biden. It was the first such reference since 1969, The Japan Times reports.