TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Wednesday she is “always open” to dialogue with China amid a diplomatic row between Tokyo and Beijing over comments she made about Taiwan.
“China is an important neighbor for Japan, and we need to build constructive and stable relationships,” Takaichi told a news conference.
“Japan is always open to dialogue with China. We’re not shutting our door.”
China and Japan are enmeshed in a spat over Takaichi’s suggestion in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in any attack on the self-ruled democratic island.
China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.
The comments triggered a sharp diplomatic backlash from Beijing, which has urged its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan.
Chinese military aircraft locked radar onto Japanese jets in the latest incident this month, prompting Tokyo to summon Beijing’s ambassador.
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PM Takaichi says Japan ‘always open’ to dialogue with China
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PM Takaichi says Japan ‘always open’ to dialogue with China
- China and Japan are enmeshed in a spat over Takaichi’s suggestion in November that Tokyo could intervene militarily in any attack on the self-ruled democratic island
Memorial for Swiss bar fire victims goes up in flames: police
CRANS MONTANA: A memorial for the victims of the deadly New Year’s fire in Switzerland itself caught fire early Sunday, police said, adding they were investigating what sparked the blaze.
The fire that erupted at the Le Constellation bar in the ski resort town of Crans-Montana in the early hours of January 1 killed 41 people and injured 115, mainly teenagers and young adults.
A makeshift memorial, laden with flowers, candles and messages of condolence set up near the site of the tragedy, caught alight around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) on Sunday, regional police said in a statement.
“Firefighters were able to quickly bring the fire under control,” Wallis police said on X.
They said an investigation had been opened into what caused the blaze at the memorial, which long sat right in front of the burned-out bar, but had recently been moved a bit further away.
Images broadcast by Swiss public broadcaster RTS on Sunday showed the blackened top of white, igloo-like tarpaulin erected over the memorial to protect it from the weather visible behind a white screen and police tape.
The fire that erupted at the Le Constellation bar in the ski resort town of Crans-Montana in the early hours of January 1 killed 41 people and injured 115, mainly teenagers and young adults.
A makeshift memorial, laden with flowers, candles and messages of condolence set up near the site of the tragedy, caught alight around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) on Sunday, regional police said in a statement.
“Firefighters were able to quickly bring the fire under control,” Wallis police said on X.
They said an investigation had been opened into what caused the blaze at the memorial, which long sat right in front of the burned-out bar, but had recently been moved a bit further away.
Images broadcast by Swiss public broadcaster RTS on Sunday showed the blackened top of white, igloo-like tarpaulin erected over the memorial to protect it from the weather visible behind a white screen and police tape.
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