Pandemic to Reveal China's Strategy: Japan Defense Paper Draft

Tokyo, May 21 (Jiji Press)--A draft of Japan's 2020 defense white paper cites the possibility of the coronavirus pandemic helping China engage in the strategy of fueling strategic competition between nations with the aim of forming an international order advantageous to the nation, it was learned Thursday. China is also thought to be maneuvering to influence the international community partly through the dissemination of false information amid social confusion and uncertainty over the epidemic, the draft says. It also notes an incident earlier this month in which Chinese coast guard ships chased a Japanese fishing boat in Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. China is relentlessly attempting to unilaterally change the status quo, the draft paper says. The Japanese-administered islands are claimed by China, which calls them Diaoyu. Japan will keep a close watch on the situation with great interest as a matter affecting its national security, the draft says. The draft also says that North Korea's modes of attack have become complex, as it has developed missiles with anomalous trajectories and improved surprise attack capabilities, in addition to already having ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. It adds that the developments in North Korea area a new challenge to the efforts by Japan, United States, South Korea and other nations to collaborate over information-sharing and intercepting capabilities. Defense Minister Taro Kono is expected to submit the paper to a cabinet meeting in July. END