Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Friday that a Taiwan emergency involving the use of military force could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan under the country's security legislation.

Her remarks suggested Japan could exercise the right of collective self-defense if such a situation is recognized as "survival-threatening," even under the nation's war-renouncing Constitution, in a move that would provoke China, which claims the self-ruled island as its territory.

She apparently acknowledged her government could, depending on the circumstances, authorize the Self-Defense Forces to take action if China were to impose a maritime blockade on Taiwan or engage in other coercive measures, even if Japan is not directly attacked.

Takaichi, who took office on Oct. 21, is known as a pro-Taiwan lawmaker. She is also viewed as a successor in her outlook to assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, whose hawkish views on national security have shaped her nationalistic stance.

"The situation regarding Taiwan has become serious. We must assume the worst-case scenario," Takaichi said at a parliamentary session on Friday.

In 2021, former Prime Minister Taro Aso said Japan "would have to defend Taiwan" with the United States if the island is invaded by mainland China, triggering a strong backlash from Beijing. Taiwan was under Japanese colonial rule for 50 years through 1945.

Abe, meanwhile, said in the same year, "A Taiwan contingency is a contingency for Japan. In other words, it is also a contingency for the Japan-U.S. alliance. People in Beijing, particularly President Xi Jinping, should not misjudge that."

Democratic Taiwan and Communist-led China have been separately governed since they split in 1949 as a result of a civil war. Their relationship has deteriorated since 2016 when independence-leaning political leaders have taken office as Taiwan's president.

Although Tokyo severed diplomatic ties with Taipei, establishing them with Beijing in 1972, Taiwan and Japan have continued to maintain unofficial relations, due primarily to economic cooperation by the private sector.