China accuses Japan of ‘smear attacks’ in recent talks with the US, India and Australia

BEIJING — China has expressed strong dissatisfaction to Japan about what it called “smear attacks” against China at recent high-level meetings with the United States, India and Australia, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

A ministry statement said that Liu Jinsong, the director general of the Asian affairs department, conveyed solemn representations and serious concern at a meeting the previous day with Akira Yokochi, the deputy chief of mission at the Japanese Embassy.

“Liu pointed out that Japan’s smear attacks on China are self-contradictory to its statement of promoting the strategic and reciprocal relationship between the two countries,” the statement said.

Meeting in Tokyo on Sunday, Japan’s foreign and defense ministers agreed to bolster military cooperation with the U.S. at what are known as “2+2” talks with their American counterparts.

A joint statement said China’s foreign policy “seeks to reshape the international order for its own benefit at the expense of others” and that such behavior represents “the greatest strategic challenge” in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond.

The U.S.-Japan talks were followed by a meeting on Monday of the foreign ministers from the Quad countries — the U.S. Japan, India and Australia. The joint statement did not mention China by name but expressed opposition to “the militarization of disputed features and coercive and intimidating maneuvers in the South China Sea.”

The Chinese government has complained repeatedly about the U.S. deepening ties with other countries in the face of China’s rise, which President Joe Biden has made a priority during his four years in office.

The Foreign Ministry statement said China urges Japan to stop making irresponsible remarks on China’s internal affairs — a likely reference to Taiwan — and called on Japan to stop colluding with “certain countries” to form small circles that lead to confrontation.

A Japanese Embassy statement said that Yokochi had expounded Japan’s positions at the meeting and made representations on various China-related topics, but it did not provide any details.