Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian at the press conference on March 24, 2026

It is far from sufficient that the Japanese side only expressed regret to the Chinese side. We once again urge the Japanese side to have a thorough investigation into the incident as soon as possible and fully account for the incident, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told the Global Times at a regular press conference on Friday in response to a question on the latest updates after Japan's defense minister said at a press conference on Friday that as an armed organization, maintaining discipline within the Self-Defense Forces is of utmost importance, and that it was deeply regrettable that a Self-Defense Forces officer, who should be complying with the law and maintaining discipline, had been arrested for breaking into the Chinese embassy. Japanese media also reported that the person had no intention to hurt others.

Lin said that There are now more details about the incident. The perpetrator is a lieutenant of Japan's Self-Defense Forces. He chose a time when the embassy staff were commuting to work, scaled the wall, broke into the embassy in clear violation of the law, carrying a 31cm sharp knife, and hid in the bush for a long time.

We have to ask, who is he waiting for in hiding, and what did he intend to do? The Japanese side has not given any explanation about this by far, Lin said.

Lin added that when this incident was first known to the public, Japanese far-right forces tried to deny that the perpetrator is an SDF officer, but now the facts are crystal clear.

Japan has expressed deep regret to China over the incident, but that is far from sufficient. We once again urge the Japanese side to immediately launch a thorough investigation and fully account for the incident, Lin said.

Global Times