China Bans Dual-Use Exports to Japan, Escalating Tensions Over Taiwan

Jan 07, 2026 - 10:57

Updated: 4 months ago

China Bans Dual-Use Exports to Japan, Escalating Tensions Over Taiwan

China has banned exports of items with both military and civilian uses to Japan, according to the regime’s commerce ministry, escalating pressure on Tokyo over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on Taiwan last year.

Exporters, including domestic and overseas, are prohibited from selling dual-use items originating in China to Japan, the regime’s Ministry of Commerce said in a notice on Jan. 6.

The ban is effective immediately and applies to “Japanese military users, military purposes, and all other end-user purposes that could help enhance Japan’s military capability,” the ministry said.

Under China’s export control regulations, dual-use items refer to goods, technologies, and services with civilian and military applications, including technical information and related data that could aid in the development and manufacturing of mass-destruction weapons.

The regime has placed rare earth and some critical materials under its dual-use item restrictions. China is the world’s leading supplier of dozens of strategic minerals and has a near monopoly on rare earths, a group of 17 metallic elements used in military equipment such as jets and submarines, as well as in a wide range of commercial products, including electric vehicles and smartphones.

In October, Beijing announced a broad plan to expand export controls on rare earths, requiring that items containing more than 0.1 percent rare-earth elements sourced from China obtain dual-use export licenses.

The new rule, targeting all of China’s trading partners, has been paused for one year under a trade deal reached following a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea on Oct. 30.

This year’s dual-use export restriction list, released on Dec. 31, covers more than 1,000 items, ranging from chemical elements and certain steel to equipment used to produce aviation and space components.

A ministry spokesperson said the latest export ban was a response to the Japanese leader’s remarks on Taiwan, a self-ruled democracy the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) views as its own and to be taken by force if necessary.

The spokesperson said in a separate statement on Jan. 6 that those comments amount to interference in China’s internal affairs and have “profoundly detrimental consequences.”

Japan’s trade ministry didn’t respond to a request for comment by publication time.

Takaichi, in response to a November parliamentary question, said that a Taiwan contingency could constitute a potential “survival-threatening situation” for Japan, a designation that might enable Japan to exercise its right to self-defense.

Japan, like most countries, doesn’t have formal ties with Taiwan, but has frequently stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Japan’s westernmost tip, Yonaguni, is about 68 miles from Taiwan’s coastline.

After unleashing a barrage of harsh criticism and violent threats aimed at Takaichi, the CCP has dialed up economic retaliation to compel Japan to retract the statement on Taiwan. The regime’s foreign ministry warned tourists against traveling to Japan, and its education ministry advised Chinese students to plan their studies in Japan with caution. After delaying the release of some Japanese movies, Beijing has threatened that there is “no market” for Japanese seafood in China.

Despite rising pressures, Takaichi has rejected the CCP’s demands, saying there are no changes to Tokyo’s long-standing stance on Taiwan and that her government remains open to dialogue with Beijing.

To isolate Japan, the CCP has sought to rally international support. At a Jan. 5 meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Beijing, Chinese leader Xi Jinping highlighted the two nations’ efforts to fight against Japanese militarism more than eight decades ago, calling on Seoul to collaborate with Beijing to defend what he called “the achievements of victory in World War II” and to safeguard the “peace and stability of Northeast Asia,” according to a readout from China’s foreign ministry.

The regime has a record of leveraging its dominance in critical materials in diplomatic spats with Tokyo. In 2010, Chinese authorities temporarily blocked exports of rare earths to Japan as tensions between the two Asian powers escalated over disputed islands in the East China Sea.