China postpones trilateral culture ministers' meeting as Beijing-Tokyo tension boils
Published: 20 Nov. 2025, 18:35
![Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ahead of their meeting in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, on Oct. 31. [AP/YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/20/98d93243-6746-4dd8-871a-013c0a92f359.jpg)
Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ahead of their meeting in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, on Oct. 31. [AP/YONHAP]
China has postponed a trilateral meeting of culture ministers with Korea and Japan scheduled for next week, Seoul said on Thursday, as a sharp dispute between Beijing and Tokyo over Taiwan clouds regional cooperation.
China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism notified Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Tuesday that it would delay the meeting, which had been set for next Monday in Macau. Seoul said Beijing did not provide a specific reason.
The annual meeting, launched in 2007 and rotated among the three countries, is meant to promote cultural exchange and cooperation.
Beijing has signaled publicly that the delay stems from remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who said earlier this month that Japan could exercise collective self-defense in a Taiwan contingency — the first such statement by a sitting Japanese leader.
China , which claims self-governed Taiwan as its own territory under its "One China" principle, reacted angrily. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning on Thursday said Takaichi's remarks “trample on international law and basic norms in international relations" and "triggered strong outrage and condemnation from the Chinese people."
Mao added that the remarks had undermined the basis for trilateral cooperation and that the environment needed for Korea, China and Japan to meet no longer existed for the time being.
Chinese state media and government agencies have repeatedly criticized Tokyo. The Chinese state-run Global Times said in an editorial Thursday that Japan will "inevitably suffer even more severe consequences" if Takaichi fails to acknowledge and correct her "mistakes."
Beijing has also urged its citizens to avoid travel to and study in Japan, halted screenings of Japanese films and suspended the recently resumed import of Japanese seafood.
Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account run by state broadcaster China Central Television, said China had prepared practical retaliatory measures against Japan, listing sanctions and halting government-level exchanges as possible steps.
Experts say prolonged tensions could complicate other planned trilateral engagements, including a summit that Tokyo has sought to host and working-level dialogue across various fields.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY HA NAM-HYUN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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