Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian criticized remarks of a senior official at the Japanese Prime Minister's Office about possessing nuclear weapons, saying they have exposed the ambitions of Japanese right-wing forces to remilitarize the country. Lin made the criticisms at a press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday in response to a media query about reports that the official's claim that Japan should have nuclear weapons has sparked strong oppositions at home and abroad, and that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Tuesday cited the need to prepare for a long military conflict as a reason for swiftly revising three key security documents. Shotlist: Beijing, China - Dec 24, 2025: 1. Press briefing in progress; 2. Reporters; 3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Lin Jian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "I have noted relevant reports and also various local governments and civil organizations' protest statements and petitions in Japan. It now appears the nuclear armament remarks by the senior official at the Japanese Prime Minister's Office are by no means an isolated incident."; 4. Reporters; 5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Lin Jian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "In recent years, Japan has loosened its self-imposed constraints on the right of collective self-defense, developed medium- and long-range offensive weapons, increased troop deployments, restructured its command system and expanded the operational scope of the Self-Defense Forces, seriously violating provisions of internationally legally binding documents such as the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation, as well as its own Constitution. In just two months since Prime Minister Takaichi took office, Japan has further accelerated military expansion, brought forward by two years the goal of raising defense spending to 2 percent of GDP, further eased restrictions on arms exports, pushed ahead with revisions to the National Security Strategy and other major security documents, and discussed revising the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, while hinting at the introduction of nuclear-powered submarines."; 6. Reporters; 7. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Lin Jian, spokesman, Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "After Prime Minister Takaichi made erroneous remarks regarding Taiwan, a close aide again issued fallacious comments, repeatedly testing the bottom line of the international community and exposing Takaichi's long-standing misguided positions and the Japanese right wing's ambition to push re-militarization, sending an extremely dangerous signal. Such moves challenge the post-war international order, threaten regional peace and stability, and run counter to the interests of the Japanese people. China will work with all peace-loving countries to firmly prevent the revival of Japanese militarism."; 8. Reporters; 9. Press briefing in progress. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]