India, June 1 -- Japan on Sunday dismissed China's charge of "new militarism", with Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi questioning Beijing's own military expansion, including its nuclear arsenal, strategic bombers and rising defence spending.

Addressing the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore, Koizumi defended Japan's ongoing defence modernisation and stressed that Tokyo remained committed to its post-war pacifist principles while adapting to an increasingly complex security environment in the Indo-Pacific.

"Some of you may have heard the term 'new militarism', but nothing (could be) further from the truth."

"Think about it. There is a country that has a huge arsenal of nuclear weapons and strategic bombers. Japan has neithe...