Commenting on Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks on Taiwan, Russian scholar Vladimir Nelidov said the trend towards the militarization of Japan has been going on for a long time.

He said that the United States has long been the driving force behind Japan’s militarism revival, seeking to build Japan into a strategic tool against China.

He pointed out that the Japanese economy is vulnerable as China is one of the main trading partners of Japan.

Takaichi's remarks, to a certain extent, symbolic gestures, Nelidov said. Although provocative, they are unlikely to trigger concrete action, given Japan’s economic vulnerability and its dependence on China.

Nelidov works as a senior lecturer of the Department of Asian and African Studies of MGIMO University, and regularly publishes commentaries in the media regarding the current issues of Japanese politics and Russian-Japanese relations.