Japan PM Takaichi warns of China ‘coercion’, vows security overhaul

Japan's PM Sanae Takaichi vows to overhaul defense strategy and combat China's coercion amid rising security threats.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned of growing Chinese “coercion” ​in her first post-election speech to parliament on Friday (February 20, 2026), and pledged ⁠to overhaul defence strategy, ease curbs on military exports and strengthen critical supply chains.

Ms. Takaichi’s four-month tenure has been marked by a diplomatic dispute with China after she said Japan ‌could deploy military force to counter any attack on Taiwan that also threatened Japanese territory. After turning a fragile majority into a ‌landslide victory in this month’s lower house election, Ms. Takaichi outlined an agenda aimed ‌at ⁠countering what she sees as a growing economic and security ⁠threat from China and its regional partners.

With more than two-thirds of seats now controlled by her ruling coalition, she faces little resistance to her plans.

“Japan faces its most severe ​and complex security environment since World War ‌Two,” Ms. Takaichi said, pointing to China’s expanding military activity, its closer security ties with Russia and North Korea’s rising nuclear missile capability.

The government would revise Japan’s three core security documents this year to produce a new defence ‌strategy and would accelerate a review of military export rules to ​expand overseas sales and strengthen defence companies, she added.

“China has intensified its attempts to unilaterally change the status quo through force ⁠or coercion in the East China Sea and South China Sea,” she told lawmakers.