Japan: PM Takaichi flags China ‘Coercion,’ pledges defence security overhaul

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned of growing Chinese "coercion" in her first post-election speech to parliament on Friday, February 20, 2026, pledging to overhaul defense strategy, ease ‌curbs on military exports, and strengthen critical supply chains.

Takaichi's four-month tenure has been marked by a diplomatic dispute ‌with China after she said Japan could use military force to respond to any attack on Taiwan that also threatened Japanese territory.

Fresh from turning a fragile majority into a landslide victory in this month's lower house election, Takaichi outlined an agenda to counter what she sees as mounting economic and security threats from China and its regional partners.

PM faces political resistance:

With Takaichi's ruling coalition now holding more than two-thirds of seats, she faces little political resistance.

"Japan faces its most severe and complex security environment since ‌World War Two," Takaichi said, pointing to China's widening military activity and closer security ties with Russia, as well as North Korea’s growing nuclear missile capability.

She said the government would revise Japan's three core security documents this year to produce a new defense strategy and would accelerate a review of military export rules to expand overseas sales and strengthen defense companies.

A policy panel of Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party proposed on Friday to scrap rules that limit military exports to non-lethal equipment such as body armor, the Kyodo news agency said.

Such a change could significantly widen the range of defense equipment Japanese ‌firms can sell overseas.

"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.

Rising Chinese military pressure:

Japan has reported frequent Chinese naval and air activity near the Senkaku Islands (disputed with China)

and increased joint China-Russia military drills near Japanese territory.

It also fears expanding Chinese missile capabilities can reach Japan.

Therefore, PM Sanae Takaichi warned of Chinese “coercion" and pledged a security overhaul mainly because Japan sees its regional security environment rapidly deteriorating.