The government of Japan has expressed concern about China’s military buildup, stating that China may have 1500 nuclear warheads by 2035, as we read in RFI:

In a draft 2023 version of Japan’s defense white paper, Japan expressed serious concern over Russia and China’s increased military activities in its surrounding waters, saying they appeared to be “obviously interested in showing our country force,” Kyodo News reported on Tuesday, May 23 .

The draft white paper states that since July 2019, Chinese and Russian bombers have conducted five joint flights near Japan.

Of the five incidents, a flight in May 2022 was a “show of force” when Tokyo was hosting a quadrilateral security dialogue summit with Australia, India and the United States.

Kyodo News said the defense white paper will be formally reported at a Japanese cabinet meeting and released in July.

The draft defense white paper describes China as its “biggest strategic challenge”, repeating a line from Japan’s National Security Strategy updated last December.

The defense white paper estimated that China could have 1,500 nuclear warheads by 2035 and said its military buildup was focused on seeking dominance in new domains, including outer space, cyberspace and electromagnetic warfare.