Facing reprisals from Beijing for a remark over Taiwan, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi must walk a fine line to prevent escalating the dispute without looking weak at home.

Weeks into the job, Japan’s new leader has come face-to-face with what it means to cross China’s red line on Taiwan.

Trade cooperation between China and Japan has been "severely damaged", the Chinese commerce ministry said on Thursday, urging the Japanese prime minister to retract her comments on Taiwan or face the consequences.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi rebuffed demands from China to retract her recent comments about Taiwan, saying there was no change to Tokyo's stance on how it would respond to a major regional security crisis.

Since Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi declared her support for Taiwan, tensions between the two powers have escalated. Beijing wants to pressure Tokyo into reversing its position while deterring other countries from expressing support for Taiwan.

Tensions spiraled on Nov. 8, when Takaichi said that a Chinese attempt to seize Taiwan by force would constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan.

China was already wary about Japan's new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, a renowned Beijing hawk, before she weighed in on one of its most sensitive issues: Taiwan. Now it's unleashing economic pain.

Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi has infuriated China with her recent remarks, with no clear means of resolution.

As China reportedly mulls a ban on Japanese seafood amid a standoff between the Asian neighbors, Taiwan's leader shows support for Tokyo, with his lunch.

Pigott's X post came as China, infuriated by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's recent remarks on Taiwan, ramps up pressure on Japan with the dispatch of coast guard vessels to waters near the uninhabited islets, travel warnings and moves to suspend imports of Japanese seafood.

China is escalating its warnings to Japan as Beijing confirms Premier Li Qiang will not meet Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi at the G20 Summit. China’s Foreign Ministry accused Tokyo of “crossing red lines” on Taiwan and urged Japan to “behave itself.