Japanese Embassy in the UK silent over alleged anti-China 'paid propaganda'

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The Japanese Embassy to Britain remained silent one day after The Sunday Times said that it had been paying a British think tank to wage a PR campaign against China.

An official with the Japanese Embassy in London acknowledged on Monday morning that the embassy had received an enquiry letter from Xinhua seeking confirmation and comments on the January 29 report, "Rifkind a stooge in secret PR war on China."

However, the Japanese Embassy has failed to reply so far.

Shinzo Abe, Japan's prime minister, delivers his policy speech during a plenary session at the lower house of the parliament in Tokyo, Japan, on Friday, January. 20, 2017. /CFP Photo

The Times report claimed that Japan had been paying 10,000 pounds (12,475 US dollars) per month to a British think tank to hype up the so-called "China threat" among British high-level politicians. It said that the Japanese Embassy in London reached a deal with the Henry Jackson Society (HJS), a registered charity founded in 2005, to wage a secret propaganda campaign against China.

A spokesman from HJS told Xinhua on Monday that the society works with organizations and governments in promoting liberal democracy, human rights and international security. The spokesman refused to say whether the alleged financial deal with Japan is part of its efforts to promote democracy and human rights.

"We can never reveal specific details. Our position on this is well known and we will continue to support the values that free and democratic societies uphold," the spokesman said.

Malcolm Rifkind gestures as he leaves an office in Westminster in London on February 24, 2015. /CFP Photo

British media said that the financial deal was reached in response to growing cooperation between China and Britain.

This weekend, former British foreign secretary Malcolm Rifkind acknowledged that the HJS had approached him to put his name to an article published by the Daily Telegraph last August, expressing concerns about China's involvement in Britain's Hinkley Point C nuclear plant.

The August 16, 2016 article - titled "How China could switch off Britain's lights in a crisis if we let them build Hinkley C" - raised fears that "no one knows what 'backdoor' technologies might be able to be introduced into the building of a power plant".

Screenshot of the article entitled How China could switch off Britain's lights in a crisis if we let them build Hinkley C"

The Sunday Times said Japan's secret public relations war on China reflects Tokyo's concerns about the "golden decade" of Sino-British cooperation.

(With inputs from Xinhua)