China Threatens to Crack Skulls After Japan's Shinzo Abe Speaks Up for Taiwan

China lashed out at Shinzo Abe on Wednesday after Japan's former prime minister said a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be an "emergency" for both Tokyo and Washington. In his most direct remarks on the subject yet, Abe had told a Taiwanese think tank earlier the same day that the Chinese leadership, including Xi Jinping himself, needed to exercise restraint.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Abe "babbled utter nonsense." Invoking a Xi speech from July's Chinese Communist Party centennial, Wang said: "No one should underestimate the strong resolve, determination and capability of the Chinese people to safeguard their national sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Those who cross China's red lines "will have their heads broken and bloodied," he added—another line referencing Xi's address.

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