The concerns follow remarks by U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld last week in Singapore about China's military spending. They also come after a slew of violent anti-Japanese protests in China, presumably approved by the government, after Beijing accused Tokyo of ignoring its World War II-era past and approving textbooks that whitewashed its colonial rule over China.

China has also criticized Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's repeated visits to a shrine that honors the war dead, including those who fought in World War II. China, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, is also a key opponent of Japan's bid for a seat on body.

China's growing economic and military clout has led to much alarm in the region and elsewhere.

"China appears to be expanding its missile forces, allowing them to reach targets in many areas of the world, not just the Pacific region, while also expanding its missile capabilities within this region," Rumsfeld said in Singapore.

"Since no nation threatens China, one must wonder: Why this growing investment? Why these continuing large and expanding arms purchases? Why these continuing robust deployments?"

At the same security conference, Japan's defense chief Yoshinori Ohno also expressed concerns about China's military but stopped short of calling it a threat.

But Hisahiko Okazaki, a former ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Thailand, wrote in the Yomiuri Shimbun Sunday that China's consistent military buildup in peace time may be comparable to Germany before World War I.

Yoshihisa Komori, special editor for the Sankei Newspaper, citing information in the latest China Report published by the Pentagon, warned about China's missile arsenals targeting major Japanese cities.

Last December, the Japanese government explicitly acknowledged China's military modernization "in nuclear and missile capabilities as well as naval and air forces" for the first time in "National Defense Program Guideline for FY2005 and After." It said Japan should "remain attentive to its future course."

Although most Japanese may dismiss a security risk from China, many will likely recall the violent anti-Japanese protests in China earlier this year. So far more than 10,000 travelers, including students, have canceled trips to China, the country's travel industry says. This, many say, is likely to persist in the future, too, because of the deep-seated mistrust between the two countries.

"This is the very structural problem we (Japanese) have to face," said Yukio Okamoto, a former diplomat and Koizumi confidant on international affairs. At a recent speech to foreign journalists, he sounded pessimistic about improved relations unless China altered its education policy, which the Japanese say is biased against them.

The Japanese business community also expects a slowdown of cooperation with China. Hiroshi Okuda, president of Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation), said there were signs of a more cautious approach toward ventures in China.

Mindful of the frequently chanted slogans during the ant-Japanese demonstrations -- "Resist Japanese products" -- Yoichi Maie, deputy director general of the Beijing office of the Japan External Trade Organization, was quoted by the Kyodo news agency as saying he was worried Japanese companies may be excluded "from tenders or cancellation of contracts."

Japan has over the years spent $30 billion on China in the form of official development assistance, which helped China build roads, bridges, airports and the underground railway system.

During the Cold War, Japan separated politics from economics when dealing with China, overlooking the communist system while engaging in trade. Okazaki, the former ambassador, advises a continuation of this policy.

Meanwhile, Japan is turning its eyes toward India. Koizumi visited the county in late April and major business leaders are expected to follow his lead later this year. Japan shares the same aspiration for a permanent seat at the U.N. Security Council with the largest democracy in Asia and the two nations are coordinating their bid.

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