Japan’s Kyodo News Agency quoted “people close to Japan and the United States” on the 29th, saying that the Japanese government secretly provided the United States and the United Kingdom with information about “China’s forced detention of Muslims in Xinjiang” last year, provided that the sources of intelligence are kept confidential.
The U.S. government blamed China of human rights violations and imposed sanctions on China based on the intelligence. The United Kingdom joined in accusing China, but Japan only said it was “paying close attention to the situation”.
The Chinese government has repeatedly denied the relevant accusations.
Kyodo News Agency said that the Japanese government’s move shows that Japan has shared key intelligence behind the scenes with its partners at a time of calls within the Japanese government to join the “Five Eyes Alliance” to better respond to the “growing threat of North Korea and China”. The “Five Eyes Alliance” led by the United States does not include Japan.
Commentary said that Japan tried to maintain friendly relations with China, its largest trading partner, without compromising its relations with its security ally, the United States.
