By Wu Qiaoxi and AFP | 2025-10-31

GYEONGJU, South Korea -- Japan's new prime minister and China's longtime leader have held their first-ever meeting, during which they aired many disagreements.

Sanae Takaichi said on October 31 that she raised "serious concerns" about the South China Sea, Hong Kong and Xinjiang during her first meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, underscoring both sides' efforts to open dialogue despite deep divisions.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea, their first face-to-face exchange ever.

Takaichi told reporters that she wanted a "strategic and mutually beneficial relationship between Japan and China" but stressed that it was "important for us to engage in direct, candid dialogue."

Takaichi took office October 21.

Blunt words toward Xi

"We ... expressed serious concerns regarding actions in the South China Sea, as well as the situations in Hong Kong and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region," Takaichi said, referring to territorial disputes and Chinese curtailment of Hong Kong and Xinjiang residents' human rights.

According to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency, Xi told Takaichi he hoped her new government would have a "correct understanding of China" and adhere to the "general direction of peaceful, friendly and cooperative bilateral relations."

Takaichi said she raised a number of thorny issues, including the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands -- known in China as the Diaoyu -- where vessels from both countries regularly face off in the East China Sea. She said she spoke to Xi about export controls on rare earth materials vital to many industries and pressed for the release of Japanese citizens detained in China, as well as assurances for the safety of Japanese expatriates.

"I conveyed that we would like these matters to be addressed," she said.

The topic of Taiwan came up, said Takaichi. "Regarding Taiwan, there was some discussion from the Chinese side," she said. "I stated that for the stability and security in this region, maintaining good cross-strait relations is important."

Beijing has repeatedly denounced reports of abuses of Uyghurs' human rights in Xinjiang region, saying its policies have eradicated extremism and boosted economic development. It also claims sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea, even though an international tribunal ruling rejected China's case in 2016.

Before the meeting, analysts had anticipated a "frosty get-to-know-you" encounter, given that Xi had not sent a congratulatory message to Takaichi after she took office.

"Overall though, stability is a shared priority," Yee Kuang Heng, a professor at the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Public Policy, told AFP.

China hawk

Takaichi, Japan's first woman prime minister, is a longtime China hawk and a backer of robust defense spending.

A regular visitor to the Yasukuni Shrine, which honors Japan's war dead -- including convicted war criminals -- she has often irritated China and South Korea. Both countries suffered atrocities committed by Japanese troops in World War II or before.

She was sworn in on October 21 with her "Cabinet for Decisive Progress," promising to advance defense reforms, deepen the US–Japan alliance and strengthen Tokyo's role in the Indo-Pacific.

She is viewed as carrying on the late Shinzo Abe's political legacy and has urged Japan to revise its constitution to bolster its Self-Defense Forces.

Takaichi has previously said that Tokyo must "address the security threat" posed by Beijing.

But since becoming leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, shortly before she became prime minister, she has avoided visiting Yasukuni during major festivals.

Takaichi's pro-Taiwan views are well known. During her campaign for party leadership, she told the Hudson Institute, a US think tank, that "peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait" are of great concern to Japan and reaffirmed that "unilateral changes to the status quo through force or coercion must never occur." She described Taiwan as "an extremely important partner and a valued friend" sharing Japan's fundamental values and close economic and cultural ties.

Stronger ties with US

Takaichi has pledged to strengthen Japan's defense cooperation with Washington. "The Japan–US alliance is the cornerstone of Japan's foreign and security policy and the foundation for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region," she told the Hudson Institute.

About 60,000 US military personnel are stationed in Japan. Just days before her meeting with Xi, Takaichi hosted US President Donald Trump aboard an American aircraft carrier, where both leaders delivered speeches highlighting the alliance.

After taking office, she announced that Japan would increase defense spending to 2% of GDP this fiscal year, two years ahead of schedule.

Her first encounter with Xi, while described as frank, signals that both Tokyo and Beijing are seeking to stabilize relations after years of tension.

The rise of Japan's "Iron Lady" signals Tokyo's move toward a more proactive and assertive diplomatic and security strategy in the Indo-Pacific, one that will continue to test Sino-Japanese relations in the months ahead.