Demarches and decapitation: Japan and China's Taiwan spat

Demarches and decapitation: Japan and China's Taiwan spat

Japan and China's long-testy relations have worsened in recent days following comments by new premier Sanae Takaichi about a possible attack by Beijing on Taiwan.

With both sides lodging complaints, yet Japan insisting its long-held stance has not changed, AFP examines Takaichi's remarks, their significance and the resulting furore.

What did Takaichi say?

Before taking power last month, Takaichi, an acolyte of ex-premier Shinzo Abe, was a vocal critic of China and its military build-up in the Asia-Pacific.

She has been a regular at a shrine that honours Japan's war dead -- including those of guilty of crimes in World War II -- that is seen by Asian nations as a symbol of Japan's militaristic past.

Japan's first woman prime min