On May 6, Global Times, an official media of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), published an editorial in Chinese (an English version was published on the next day), warning Japan, “Don’t Be the ‘Leading-Way-Party (Traitor)’ for the ‘Asia-Pacification of NATO.'” The article stated, “Japan shouldn’t be a promoter for NATO’s Asia-Pacific expansion.”

The editorial said, the Ukraine crisis and the geopolitical tragedy it has triggered are not enough to kill the hunger of the U.S. and some Western countries to reap political profits from the situation. Visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his British counterpart Boris Johnson agreed in principle on May 5 on a reciprocal access agreement between the Japanese Self-defense Forces and the British military. Johnson called the move “a landmark” that will strengthen “Britain’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region.” Meanwhile, Kishida made sensational remarks. He stated that “Ukraine may be tomorrow’s East Asia,” saying that now is the time for the G7 leading nations to solidify their unity.

All these showy remarks reveal a dangerous tendency: NATO is trying to apply the tricks of “bloc politics” and “confrontation between camps” to the Asia-Pacific region. For a long time, the United Kingdom has propagated the following on several occasions, “the globalization of NATO” and the “need to preempt threats in the Indo-Pacific” and to ensure Taiwan “is able to defend itself.” Within the Asia-Pacific region, Japan is abnormally active in catering to such a scheme. It seems Tokyo wants to be the “traitorous guide” for NATO’s expansion in the Asia-Pacific region.

The United States is undoubtedly the main force behind this trend. In recent years, Washington has pushed its allies to coordinate with its strategy to look eastward. London aims to recover its declining influence by “exploring the way” for Washington. Japan wants to take advantage of the U.S. connivance to break the “shackles” of the pacifist constitution and resurrect its militarism. The Ukraine crisis is a “good dish” for some politicians who have constantly escalated their voice and who move to create regional tensions.

This editorial also expresses Beijing’s judgment on NATO. NATO makes divisions in Europe and creates crises and wars in the world. The NATO-style bloc confrontation mechanism forcibly divides regional countries into countries within the alliance and countries outside the alliance, which can only create more insecurity and cause countries to plunge into the paradox and trap of being vigilant and hostile against each other. It is definitely a poison not an antidote for easing the security anxiety and tension of regional countries. The European security “crash” proves the US-led NATO system doesn’t fit in the current era.

Now, some people want to cooperate with the United States and the West to forcibly introduce the “security model” into the Asia-Pacific region, which has proved to be a failure in Europe and has led to serious consequences. Isn’t that an intent to undermine regional peace and stability? Those countries who talk about “Ukraine may be tomorrow’s East Asia” are filled with self-interest and are serious about replicating one or more Ukrainian crises in other regions. Asian countries must remain on high alert to that.

The good situation in Asia must not be destroyed by the “new cold war.” Also. the vigilance and rejection of the “Asia-Pacification of NATO” should become a strong consensus and collective consciousness of all countries in the region.

Finally, the editorial emphasizes in particular is that Japan should not undermine the overall environment for peace and development in the region. Such an act of “inviting the wolf into the room” will harm others and harm itself.

Source: Global Times, May 06, 2022
https://opinion.huanqiu.com/article/47tzr9st2EQ, https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202205/1264992.shtml

Major Taiwanese news network Liberty Times Network (LTN) recently reported that S&P Global just upgraded Taiwan’s sovereign credit rating to AA+ with a “stable” outlook, thanks to the strong performance of Taiwan’s economy. After 21 years, Taiwan’s sovereign rating once again reached AA+. S&P explained that strong demand for Taiwan’s electronics exports drove the strong economic performance despite the pressure from rising geopolitical tensions. S&P expressed the belief that the Taiwan Strait issue will not seriously undermine Taiwan’s economic stability in the next three to five years. The rating will remain fairly balanced in the next year, and the structural demand for Taiwan’s semiconductor exports may offset the risks related to geopolitical tensions. However, geopolitical challenges still pose headwinds to Taiwan’s export-reliant economy. S&P did not believe this negative would be significant enough to derail Taiwan’s competitive manufacturing growth. Covid-19 has been driving the global acceleration of digital development, boosting Taiwan’s semiconductor exports. S&P also pointed out that Taiwan’s inflation rate has remained one of the lowest in Asia for quite a long time. This new rating adjustment was after S&P upgraded Taiwan’s sovereign rating from AA- to AA in April last year.

Source: LTN, April 29, 2022
https://ec.ltn.com.tw/article/breakingnews/3909967