President Lai Ching-te anticipated further collaboration with Japan in areas of artificial intelligence, drones, hydrogen energy and semiconductors to advance mutual prosperity.
Lai met with a delegation led by Japan’s former Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry and who is currently a member of Japan’s House of Representatives, Yasutoshi Nishimura, May 5 in the Presidential Office in Taipei City.
The guests had paid respects at a statue of late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the southern city of Kaohsiung the previous day, and Lai stated that Abe was a visionary politician who showed strong support for Taiwan.
Lai noted that China has continued to conduct military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, the East and South China seas and the Sea of Japan, all while also conducting grey zone aggression across the region, severely jeopardizing stability. As both Taiwan and Japan are situated in the first island chain, cooperation between the two in marine security is vital to deter authoritarian expansion, safeguard democracy and ensure regional stability.
The Japanese government has continued to speak in support of Taiwan on major international platforms such as the U.S.-Japan Joint Leaders’ summit and the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting, for which actions Lai conveyed appreciation.
Faced with current global economic volatility, Taiwan continues to seek entry to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and is also discussing signing an economic partnership agreement with Japan, Lai added.
In response, Nishimura said that Japan has provided considerable assistance to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company during the establishment of the Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing plant in Kumamoto prefecture and he believed that working in tandem, the two countries would forge a more resilient semiconductor supply chain.
In 2024, there were six million Taiwan visitors to Japan forming the most frequent visitors, Nishimura said, lauding the close people-to-people exchange between the two nations. (POC-E)
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