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A top Chinese military official has warned against hegemony, militarism and historical revisionism in language widely read as directed at Japan, opening the Beijing Xiangshan Forum on Wednesday.

Getting into it: Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun kicked off the forum, saying, “We must bear the lessons of history in mind and remain highly vigilant against all latent manifestations of hegemony, militarism and historical revisionism. We must not turn a blind eye or condone such behaviour. By rallying broad-based forces of justice, we must suppress the resurgence of historical dregs and prevent them from exploiting the situation to cause harm.” He described the current period as a “fragile moment” and said countries must “show no leniency towards provocative acts that seek to hijack the overall interests of countries in the region for the sake of personal gain or the interests of particular cliques.” He named no country directly and, as analysts expected, stopped short of criticizing the US or its allies outright.

He also pushed for international rules on emerging technology, saying the risk of militaries abusing it is reason enough for governments to “consult with one another on governance, and actively engage in security dialogues in areas such as artificial intelligence, outer space and the deep sea.”

The remarks land on Japan because of a comment Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made last November. She told parliament that a Chinese naval blockade of Taiwan was the kind of crisis that would clear the legal bar for Japan to deploy its Self-Defense Forces, what she called a “survival-threatening situation.” Relations have been in the gutter ever since.

Beijing’s response has been to accuse Tokyo of drifting back into militarism, citing a defense buildup bigger than anything Japan has attempted since 1945, rewritten strategic documents and a sharp jump in spending. It has also used those accusations to justify export restrictions on Japanese companies. Tokyo rejects the charge and points out that China discloses little about its own forces.

The forum drew roughly 2,000 people from dozens of countries over three days, a mix of uniformed officers, diplomats and academics. The attendance list was its own signal: most Western governments kept their delegations junior.