After Japanese warships passed through the Taiwan Strait, the People's Liberation Army launched combat readiness patrols in the East China Sea
On the 18th, the PLA Eastern Theater Command announced that joint combat readiness patrols would be conducted in the East China Sea.
The timing of this East China Sea combat readiness patrol by the PLA is particularly sensitive. Just one day earlier, on the 17th, a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force vessel transited through the Taiwan Strait—coming at a time when Koizumi Haruko has yet to formally apologize for her erroneous remarks regarding Taiwan, and as Japan Self-Defense Forces personnel continue escalating threats and intimidation against China's embassy. Japan's action is clearly a deliberate provocation aimed at inflaming tensions between China and Japan.
Therefore, although the Chinese side did not directly name Japan in its statement, the PLA’s decision to conduct combat readiness patrols in the East China Sea at this precise moment sends a signal that is already unmistakably clear.
Historically, whenever Japan faces domestic issues it cannot resolve, it habitually seeks to deflect internal contradictions by creating friction abroad—or even provoking conflicts and pursuing expansionist aggression. From the First Sino-Japanese War to the invasion of China, this pattern has repeated itself—“When in doubt, gamble on national fate.” This has become something of a long-standing malady in Japan, and now appears to be resurfacing.
Yet history has already proven that gambling on national destiny ultimately leads only to total ruin. If Japan persists in its current course, it will inevitably burn itself—paying a cost far exceeding expectations.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1862804219205707/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.