China accuses Japan of blatant interference in its internal affairs

China accused Japan on Tuesday of blatantly interfering in its internal affairs, after a Japanese official said his country could potentially provide some kind of support to Taiwan.

Japan's Minister of State for Defense, Toshiro Inoue, told British media that if mainland China were to use force against Taiwan, Japan would likely offer "some kind of support" to Taiwan.

Inoue added that he was unsure "whether Japan's support for Taiwan will be defense equipment, or whether it will be logistical support."

Commenting on this, a ministry spokeswoman said Chinese Foreign MinistryMao Ning said, "The senior Japanese Defense Ministry official blatantly interfered in China's internal affairs, and Beijing strongly opposes this and has lodged strong protests with Japan," according to China's Global Times newspaper.

and subordinate Taiwan (China) to govern independently from mainland China since 1949. Beijing views the island as a province, while Taiwan maintains that it is an autonomous state but has not gone so far as to declare independence.

Beijing opposes any official contacts of foreign countries with Taipei and considers Chinese sovereignty over the island indisputable.

(Source: Sputnik Arabic)