China calls on Japan to thoroughly investigate embassy intrusion

China urged Japan on Monday to severely punish a Japanese Self-Defense Forces officer who intruded into the Chinese embassy while carrying a knife and to conduct a thorough investigation and take corrective measures, after the officer was dismissed from service.

Japan's Self-Defense Forces said in a statement on Friday that Kodai Murata, the officer involved in the incident, had been dismissed, expressing deep regret that a member of the SDF had caused such an incident and pledging to ensure its personnel fully comply with laws and regulations.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular news briefing that the incident, in which an active-duty SDF officer intruded into the Chinese embassy with a knife and made violent threats against the Chinese side, was "unprecedented".

Guo said the incident seriously violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and posed a grave threat to the personal safety of Chinese diplomatic personnel and the security of diplomatic premises.

It also exposed deep-seated problems in Japan, including rampant right-wing forces and inadequate management and education of SDF personnel, he said.

"We have noted that the Japanese side has prosecuted the individual involved," Guo said. "We urge Japan to earnestly shoulder its responsibility, severely punish the perpetrator, conduct a thorough investigation and take corrective measures."

"The international community is also watching closely," he added.