Taiwan will have to take extra precautions to safeguard its relations with Japan now that Beijing’s former ambassador to Tokyo, Wang Yi (王毅), is head of the Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO), Taiwan’s former representative to Japan Koh Sei-kai (�?�) said at a seminar in Taipei yesterday.
The TAO is Beijing’s official agency on cross-strait affairs.
Speaking at the Taiwan New Century Foundation, Koh, an expert on Japanese culture and politics, said that based on his experience dealing with Wang, China will take every chance to sabotage relations between Taiwan and Japan, which could include adding anti-Taiwan conditions in any future China-Japan joint ventures.
“China’s strategy is to ask Japan for whatever Taiwan seeks from Tokyo. If Tokyo rejects China’s request, then Beijing will use Japan’s adherence to the ‘one-China’ policy as an excuse to say that if Tokyo fails to grant China’s requests, then it certainly cannot grant Taiwan’s requests,” Koh said.
Koh said that although Japan-China relations appeared to be improving, an increasing number of Diet members were starting to see the “true colors” of China, such as the sustained double-digit military budget buildup over the past decade.
Taiwan-Japan ties were put to the test early last month after a Japanese coast guard vessel rammed into and sank a Taiwanese fishing boat in the waters surrounding the disputed Diaoyutai (釣魚台) islands, an area claimed by China, Japan, and Taiwan.
Taiwan demanded that Japan provide compensation, release all the men on the fishing boat and publicly apologize for the mishap, conditions that were met by Tokyo just as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was recalling Koh from Tokyo.
A group of pan-blue lawmakers accused Koh of being a “traitor” and alleged he was “siding with the Japanese” in his handling of the incident.
“During the negotiations, many prominent Japanese officials — including three former foreign ministers — agreed that the cherished Taiwan-Japan relationship should not be affected over the incident,” said Koh, adding that the Japanese government had made many exceptions to ensure that the matter was concluded on friendly terms.
In a recent interview with the Japanese Sankei Shimbun, former Japanese representative to Taiwan Tadashi Ikeda said Taiwan-Japan relations could deteriorate as the new government focuses on improving relations with China, saying that anti-Japanese sentiment could easily be stirred up in Taiwan by sensational news reports.
Ministry spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) said Taiwan highly values its relations with Japan and would seek to strengthen them.
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