On June 14, 2026, South Korean media outlet Hankook Ilbo published an article titled 'China's arrogance has reached its limit... Enraged Japan finally drew its sword.'

According to Japanese media reports, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi plans to propose the establishment of a joint stockpiling system for rare earths and other critical minerals at the G7 Leaders' Summit. This move is said to have a 'strong character as a countermeasure against China's tightening restrictions on rare earth exports.'

Japanese media analyze that since Prime Minister Takaichi mentioned 'the possibility of Japan's involvement in a Taiwan contingency' last year, China has continued its restrictions on rare earth exports to Japan. Therefore, the intention is to establish a joint response system among major countries.

The article reports that 'the aim is to reduce supply chain risks and strengthen resource security cooperation at the G7 level, given the situation where China is utilizing rare earths as a strategic weapon.'

In response to this article, South Korean netizens posted comments such as: 'Why don't we ask to be included? Rare earth stockpiling is a big issue for South Korea, whose main industries are automobiles and semiconductors. To avoid kowtowing to Xi Jinping, South Korea also needs to consider its response.' 'The 21st century is a resource war. We must protect the resources of this peninsula that our ancestors defended, so that China doesn't take all the resources from the northern part of the Korean Peninsula.' 'South Korea also needs to prepare at the government level.'

Furthermore, while there were voices evaluating Ms. Takaichi's stance against China, such as 'Ms. Takaichi, that's cool!' and 'Go, Japan!', there were also concerns like 'I'm worried that Takaichi might get emotional and stir things up, triggering a war on the Korean Peninsula.' Critical opinions were also seen, such as 'It reminds me of Abe, who strengthened export restrictions on hydrogen fluoride. What's the difference?' and 'Japan deserves to suffer the same fate.' (Translation/Editing: Ma'e)