Cracks in Japan, U.S., European Ties Benefit China, Says Former Japanese Ambassador to China

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:24 JST, April 8, 2025

Hideo Tarumi, former ambassador to China, said on Monday that it would be “extremely convenient” for China if the U.S. President Donald Trump administration “creates cracks” in relations between Japan, the United States, Europe and other places.

Tarumi made a lecture at the Yomiuri International Economic Society (YIES), which was held at Tokyo Kaikan in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Monday.

Tarumi served as ambassador to China from 2020-2023. In his speech, he stressed that the U.S.-China relationship will face an even tougher situation following the reciprocal tariffs proposed by the Trump administration.

“The tougher their relationship gets, the possibility of U.S.-China deals becomes greater,” he said.

Regarding the situation in Taiwan, he said, “The cost [of Chinese armed invasion] is high. China’s most preferred goal is for Taiwan to collapse itself” through cognitive warfare and other means.

About Chinese President Xi Jinping, Tarumi said, “He believes in power based on a desire to retaliate for the history of humiliation since the Opium War.

“China is undergoing a major change from a collective leadership system to a one-man rule system [controlled by Xi],” he said.