CHINA has turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to the violent protestations raised in the rest of the world and gone ahead with yet another nuclear test on August 17. Earlier, Chinese authorities had expelled activists of the international environmental organisation Greenpeace who were holding their first demonstration in the country to protest the nuclear tests.

The Asian nations are particularly upset about what they term as an act of betrayal "of the movement toward scrapping nuclear weapons worldwide". Japan has reiterated its threat to curtail financial aid to China, as it had done after Beijing's previous nuclear test in May.

China, however, does not appear chastised. In fact, it has slammed Japan for taking such a holier-than-thou attitude. "Japan should make a profound introspection of its historical responsibilities instead of making a fuss over this issue and still less linking it with economic issues," said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman.