China Plans to Destroy Japan and U.S. in "Taiwan Contingency" Foreign Affairs Police Officials, U.S. Demand Prime Minister Kishida "Remove Politicians with Inner Ties to China
From ZAKZAK (Evening Fuji)
Aug. 14, 2023, 11:45 a.m.
U.S. President Joe Biden's comment that "China is a ticking time bomb" made at a campaign event in western Utah on August 10 has attracted attention.
He is reported to have conveyed severe concerns about the Chinese economy led by President Xi Jinping.
At the same time, China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange also announced that foreign direct investment in China by foreign companies during the April-June period totaled $4.9 billion (approx. 710 billion yen), down 87.1% from last year, the largest ever.
However, some intelligence officials have other views, including those of the Fumio Kishida administration.
Journalist Koei Kaga looks into the latest information.
When evil people (i.e., President Xi and other Chinese Communist Party officials) have problems, they do bad things.
At a campaign event on April 10, Biden followed up his "ticking time bomb" remark with a fierce criticism of China.
The next day, John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic and Public Affairs of the National Security Council (NSC), explained that Biden was "pointing out the impact that domestic disputes in China have on the world.
But Biden's real intention was quite different.
Biden is outraged by China's cyberattacks, for example," Kirby said. The U.S. has the details of China's 'secret operation plan to invade Taiwan,'" he said. The first combat operation is the cyber attack. The next is an all-out armed assault. The U.S. and China have already entered a state of cyber combat.
Regarding China's cyber force, a Defense Ministry official said, "It is the strongest. It has a total of over 170,000 personnel. The core is a specialized attack force of about 30,000. In addition, a civilian cyber unit is under the government's command, which also conducts attacks on Japan. China is planning to devastate Taiwan, Japan, and the United States with cyber attacks in the event of a 'Taiwan emergency,'" he said.
The intensifying confrontation is evident in the following facts.
(1) In mid-July, it was discovered that a group of hackers with ties to Chinese authorities had illegally penetrated the e-mail accounts of about 25 organizations, including the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce.
Key U.S. policymakers on China, including Commerce Secretary Gina Lemond, U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns, and Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink, were among the targets.
(2) On July 29, the New York Times reported that malware had been planted deep into the water, communications, and other critical infrastructure supporting the U.S. military base in the U.S. territory of Guam.
The U.S. government determined that it was the work of a Chinese hacker group and began removing it.
It is believed that the malware was activated just before the "Taiwan Emergency" and was intended to interfere with the mobilization of the U.S. military.
In early August, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) arrested two Navy personnel (Chinese-Americans) suspected of providing military secrets to Chinese intelligence agencies.
The leaked information included blueprints of U.S. Navy ships, weapons systems, operational plans for a large-scale military exercise in preparation for a "Taiwan contingency," and electrical diagrams and blueprints for the radar system at the U.S. military base in Okinawa.
Against this backdrop, the Washington Post (electronic edition) reported on July 7 that the U.S. had reported. It warned multiple times since 2020 that Chinese military hackers had penetrated networks handling Japanese defense secrets.
The U.S. reportedly indicated to the Japanese side that this was "the most serious hacking in recent years," but the Japanese side denied any information leakage.
What was happening? This series of articles, "Scoop Forefront," reports the following incidents.
In August 2020, the Ministry of Defense "received top-secret information that the Chinese military had ordered 10,000 fishing boats carrying marine militia to sail to the Senkaku Islands (in Okinawa Prefecture).
Japan hurriedly consulted with the U.S. and conducted Japan-U.S. military exercises in the surrounding waters to prevent the Senkaku Islands from being plundered.
In April 2021, the Public Security Bureau of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department filed charges against two Chinese nationals concerning cyber attacks on about 200 groups and organizations, including the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
The Chinese military cyber unit "Unit 61419" was in the background.
In December 2021, Kyodo News reported a scoop article titled "Draft of (U.S.-Japan) joint operation plan formulated for Taiwan contingency.
In a Taiwan contingency, "U.S. forces would establish a temporary base in the Nansei Islands," which the U.S. believes was "leaked by a Japanese government official.
The aforementioned foreign affairs police official said, "The Washington Post report is a warning to Prime Minister Kishida from the United States. Along with strengthening cyber security to enable the sharing of classified information with the U.S., it is a demand to 'block the leakage of classified information to China, i.e., to remove politicians who are in league with the Chinese.
There is also the danger of the Chinese military going rogue.
"Some hard-liners in the military are advising Mr. Xi to 'decide on the invasion of Taiwan as soon as possible, "In a speech in Taiwan on August 8, LDP Vice President Taro Aso said that "Japan, Taiwan, the U.S., and other volunteer countries are expected to be prepared to fight" and "if push comes to shove, we will use our defense force to defend Taiwan," which infuriated the Chinese side.
The situation is serious.
Prime Minister Kishida's firm determination to "protect the nation and its people" is required.
Leaving the leak of classified information unchecked is a betrayal of our ally. The U.S. doubts Prime Minister Kishida's resolve and determination.
Takahide Kaga
Journalist, born in 1957. After working for Shukan Bunshun and Shinchosha, he became an independent journalist and won the first Editors' Choice Award for Magazine Journalism in 1995.
He has worked extensively for weekly and monthly magazines and is known for his numerous scoops.
