China and Japan — frenemies, trading partners and uneasy neighbors with a tortured, bloody history they still struggle to navigate — are freshly at each other’s rhetorical throats as 2026 begins. From insinuations that Chinese citizens face dangers in Japan to outright accusations of resurgent Japanese imperialism,

China has escalated its trade tensions with Japan by launching an investigation into imported dichlorosilane, a chemical gas used in making semiconductors

Chinese President Xi Jinping will host South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on a state visit starting on Sunday, signalling Beijing's intent to strengthen ties with Seoul amidst strained relations with Japan over Taiwan.

A little over a decade ago, a diplomatic row with Japan would have been enough to bring people out into the streets in China or at least stir a patriotic retail boycott. China and Japan have a long-running territorial dispute over the islands and authorities appeared to tolerate the anti-Japanese demonstrations that broke out in many Chinese cities that year,