Japan-China Relations

Pokémon Games at Disputed Temple Stopped

A Pokémon event that was to be held at a disputed temple in Japan has been canceled after criticism from China, reports the AP.

The Yasukuni Jinja Shrine honors 2.5 million Japanese soldiers who died in battle during several wars, including more than 1,000 convicted war criminals. That fact does not sit well with neighboring countries that were hard hit by Japan's occupation.

"Brands that disregard history and hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will ultimately be abandoned by the market," the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, wrote on social media.

The card game event was supposed to take place on Saturday and had been advertised on Pokémon's official website, but was organized by an external party. The Pokémon Company has apologized and stated that the event "never should have been organized in the first place."

The announcement comes at a time when tensions between China and Japan have increased, after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi hinted that the country might intervene if China were to take military action against Taiwan.

The China-Japan relationship – the issue

• Relations between Japan and China deteriorated sharply after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in November 2025 opened the door to military intervention in the event of a Chinese attack on Taiwan.
• China responded with a travel warning for Chinese citizens to Japan, which led to the cancellation of approximately 500,000 flight tickets between November 15 and 17, 2025, and Japanese tourism stocks falling sharply.
• Japan sent envoys to China to defuse the conflict, while both countries urged their citizens to be vigilant and several Japanese films were stopped in China.
• The Chinese government re-imposed a total ban on imports of Japanese fish and seafood, and cultural exchanges and the possibility of new panda loans were put on hold.
• The diplomatic crisis led to incidents at the disputed Senkaku Islands and Japan made a strong protest after Chinese fighter jets locked radar on Japanese planes.