BEIJING (Kyodo) Prime Minister Taro Aso's recent portrayal of China as a nuclear threat was likely intended to gain domestic political support and justify Japan's military expansion, Chinese media reported Thursday.
"China's nuclear policy and nuclear strategy are very transparent. China's position on denuclearization is clear for all to see," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said.
He was responding to reporters' questions about Aso's remarks at a Japan-European Union summit in Prague, at which the prime minister said the security environment in Northeast Asia is increasingly hostile in view of North Korea's recent missile launch and China's modernizing its nuclear arsenal.