Japan-China Relations Cool for Half a Year, Japanese Media: Government Pessimistic About Leaders' Summit
Japan-China relations have continued to deteriorate for half a year since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks on a 'Taiwan contingency' last November. Chinese calls for avoiding travel to Japan and strengthened rare earth export controls have been observed. With ministerial-level dialogues stalled, the Japanese government is reportedly pessimistic about holding a leaders' summit this year to break the deadlock.
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Dai Ya-chen, Tokyo 7th exclusive report) Japan-China relations have continued to deteriorate for half a year since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's response in the Diet regarding a 'Taiwan contingency' last November. During this period, China not only called on its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan and strengthened controls on rare earth exports to Japan, but bilateral ministerial-level dialogues have also stalled. Internally, the Japanese government is pessimistic about holding a leaders' summit this year to break the deadlock.
According to Sankei Shimbun and Kyodo News, Takaichi's remarks on November 7 last year during a House of Representatives Budget Committee session, suggesting that a 'Taiwan contingency could constitute a situation threatening Japan's existence,' drew criticism from China for interfering in its internal affairs. This was followed by a series of countermeasures, including calls for Chinese citizens to avoid traveling to Japan.
According to statistics from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), Chinese visitors to Japan from January to March this year decreased by a significant 54.6% compared to the same period last year. Looking at the five-month period from November 2025 (when China began urging its citizens to avoid travel to Japan) to March 2026, the total number of Chinese visitors to Japan was 1.97 million, a year-on-year decrease of 44.1%.
However, the decrease in Chinese tourists has not severely impacted Japan's overall tourism market. During the same period, foreign visitors to Japan still increased by 3.5% year-on-year. Excluding China, visitors from other countries grew by 15.7%. In 2025, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan reached 42,683,600, an increase of 15.8% from the previous year, setting a new historical record.
In terms of consumption, according to a survey by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Chinese tourists spent an average of 243,000 Japanese Yen per person between October and December 2025, a decrease of 12.2% compared to the same period last year. The average spending for all foreign tourists was 234,000 Japanese Yen, a slight decrease of only 0.5%.
Hideo Shioya, a professor of tourism economics at Kokugakuin University, analyzed that Chinese tourists' overseas spending power had already significantly declined due to China's economic stagnation even before the Chinese government issued calls for self-restraint on travel to Japan. "Even without self-restraint measures, the presence of the Chinese market is unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels."
He also pointed out that after Japan nationalized the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Islands) in 2012, Chinese visitors to Japan decreased by 34.1% over a five-month period from October of that year to February of the following year. However, the current decrease is even larger. "At that time, China's economy was in good shape, but now it is in a stagnant state, so this situation is not necessarily entirely due to political factors."
Shioya believes that even if China lifts its self-restraint measures on travel to Japan in the future, the Chinese tourist market is unlikely to recover in the short term.
In addition to the tourism sector, China continues to intensify economic pressure. Since January this year, the Chinese government has strengthened restrictions on the export of rare earths and other dual-use goods to Japan. Japanese diplomatic sources revealed, "Although it has not yet reached the point of threatening the survival of Japanese companies, it is indeed being tightened step by step."
The deterioration of bilateral relations is also reflected in diplomatic documents. In the 2026 edition of Japan's "Diplomatic Bluebook," the positioning of China was downgraded from the 2025 edition's "one of the most important bilateral relationships" to "an important neighbor." Furthermore, Sanae Takaichi is currently promoting revisions to the three security documents to strengthen defense capabilities, which China is bound to respond to strongly.
On the other hand, driven by the depreciation of the Japanese Yen, the number of visitors from Europe, the US, Australia, and other Asian countries continues to increase. In March this year, the Japanese government announced a new version of the "Basic Plan for Promoting Japan as a Tourism-Oriented Nation," setting a target of 60 million visitors and 15 trillion Japanese Yen in consumption by 2030.
However, Hideo Shioya also warned that if the Middle East situation, such as the US and Israel attacking Iran, continues to deteriorate, it could lead to stagflation in Asia, further dragging down the Japanese tourism market. (Editor: Chen Cheng-kung) 1150507
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(Central News Agency reporter Dai Ya-chen, Tokyo 7th exclusive report) Japan-China relations have continued to deteriorate for half a year since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's response in the Diet regarding a 'Taiwan contingency' last November. During this period, China not only called on its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan and strengthened controls on rare earth exports to Japan, but bilateral ministerial-level dialogues have also stalled. Internally, the Japanese government is pessimistic about holding a leaders' summit this year to break the deadlock.
According to Sankei Shimbun and Kyodo News, Takaichi's remarks on November 7 last year during a House of Representatives Budget Committee session, suggesting that a 'Taiwan contingency could constitute a situation threatening Japan's existence,' drew criticism from China for interfering in its internal affairs. This was followed by a series of countermeasures, including calls for Chinese citizens to avoid traveling to Japan.
According to statistics from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), Chinese visitors to Japan from January to March this year decreased by a significant 54.6% compared to the same period last year. Looking at the five-month period from November 2025 (when China began urging its citizens to avoid travel to Japan) to March 2026, the total number of Chinese visitors to Japan was 1.97 million, a year-on-year decrease of 44.1%.
However, the decrease in Chinese tourists has not severely impacted Japan's overall tourism market. During the same period, foreign visitors to Japan still increased by 3.5% year-on-year. Excluding China, visitors from other countries grew by 15.7%. In 2025, the total number of foreign visitors to Japan reached 42,683,600, an increase of 15.8% from the previous year, setting a new historical record.
In terms of consumption, according to a survey by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Chinese tourists spent an average of 243,000 Japanese Yen per person between October and December 2025, a decrease of 12.2% compared to the same period last year. The average spending for all foreign tourists was 234,000 Japanese Yen, a slight decrease of only 0.5%.
Hideo Shioya, a professor of tourism economics at Kokugakuin University, analyzed that Chinese tourists' overseas spending power had already significantly declined due to China's economic stagnation even before the Chinese government issued calls for self-restraint on travel to Japan. "Even without self-restraint measures, the presence of the Chinese market is unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels."
He also pointed out that after Japan nationalized the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Islands) in 2012, Chinese visitors to Japan decreased by 34.1% over a five-month period from October of that year to February of the following year. However, the current decrease is even larger. "At that time, China's economy was in good shape, but now it is in a stagnant state, so this situation is not necessarily entirely due to political factors."
Shioya believes that even if China lifts its self-restraint measures on travel to Japan in the future, the Chinese tourist market is unlikely to recover in the short term.
In addition to the tourism sector, China continues to intensify economic pressure. Since January this year, the Chinese government has strengthened restrictions on the export of rare earths and other dual-use goods to Japan. Japanese diplomatic sources revealed, "Although it has not yet reached the point of threatening the survival of Japanese companies, it is indeed being tightened step by step."
The deterioration of bilateral relations is also reflected in diplomatic documents. In the 2026 edition of Japan's "Diplomatic Bluebook," the positioning of China was downgraded from the 2025 edition's "one of the most important bilateral relationships" to "an important neighbor." Furthermore, Sanae Takaichi is currently promoting revisions to the three security documents to strengthen defense capabilities, which China is bound to respond to strongly.
On the other hand, driven by the depreciation of the Japanese Yen, the number of visitors from Europe, the US, Australia, and other Asian countries continues to increase. In March this year, the Japanese government announced a new version of the "Basic Plan for Promoting Japan as a Tourism-Oriented Nation," setting a target of 60 million visitors and 15 trillion Japanese Yen in consumption by 2030.
However, Hideo Shioya also warned that if the Middle East situation, such as the US and Israel attacking Iran, continues to deteriorate, it could lead to stagflation in Asia, further dragging down the Japanese tourism market. (Editor: Chen Cheng-kung) 1150507
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
Text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.