The world has lost an important leader and Taiwan has lost a friend, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday after former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe died hours after he was shot while giving an election campaign speech.
“Not only has the international community lost an important leader, but Taiwan has also lost an important and close friend. Taiwan and Japan are both democratic countries with the rule of law, and our government severely condemns violent and illegal acts,” Tsai said in a statement released by the Presidential Office.
Abe had spared no effort to deepen Taiwan-Japan relations and had been instrumental in convincing the Japanese government to donate COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan, Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (張惇涵) quoted Tsai as saying.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Tsai has instructed Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) and Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) to pay condolences to Abe’s family on behalf of the government, Chang said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has instructed the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan to issue formal condolences to the Japanese government on behalf of Taiwan.
Abe has been a great friend of Taiwan and spoke out for the nation on multiple occasions, such as urging other countries to adjust policies of “strategic ambiguity” toward Taiwan, instead saying that they would come to the nation’s defense, the ministry said.
Hsieh said that he and Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Chairman Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) only last week visited Abe to deliver an invitation to visit Taiwan later this month.
Hsieh said Abe had agreed to a visit. “I cannot believe that was my last meeting with him,” he added.
Abe’s passing was similar to a close family member passing away, Hsieh added.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) also extended condolences to Abe’s family and strongly condemned violence, saying that acts contravening the basic principles of a democratic society and rule of law are unacceptable.
The KMT regrets that Japan has lost a capable leader and politician, it said in a statement, adding that it is saddened Taiwan has lost a good friend.
“Abe is forever Taiwan’s good friend,” KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said in a separate short video.
The New Power Party expressed condolences and said that Abe’s policies were friendly toward the US and Taiwan, while being decisively critical of China and North Korea.
Abe’s actions contributed to Japanese society becoming increasingly Taiwan-friendly, it said.
The Taiwan People’s Party offered condolences to Japan, calling Abe “Taiwan’s old friend.”
His passing will hopefully not affect Taiwan-Japan relations, it said, urging the two countries to continue maintaining a strong friendship.
Additional reporting by Reuters, Yang Cheng-yu and Wang Chien-hao
NETWORK-MAPPING PROJECT: The database contains 170 detailed files of Taiwanese politicians and about 23 million records of household registration data in Taiwan China has developed a network-mapping project targeting political figures and parties in Taiwan to monitor public opinion during elections and to craft tailored influence campaigns aimed at dividing Taiwanese society, according to documents leaked by Chinese technology firm GoLaxy (中科天璣). The documents, collected by Taipei-based Doublethink Lab, showed a database was specifically created to gather detailed information on Taiwanese political figures, including their political affiliations, job histories, birthplaces, residences, education, religion and a brief biography about them. Several notable Taiwanese politicians are in the database, including President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍),
RECOGNITION: Former Fijian prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry said that Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy serves as a stabilizing force in the Indo-Pacific region Taiwan can lead the unification of the Chinese people, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former Polish president Lech Walesa said in Taipei yesterday, adding that as the world order is changing, peaceful discussion would find good solutions, and that the use of force and coercion would always fail. Walesa made the remarks during his keynote address at a luncheon of the Yushan Forum in Taipei, titled “Indo-Pacific Partnership Prospects: Taiwan’s Values, Technology and Resilience,” organized by the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Walesa said that he had been at the forefront of a big peaceful revolution and “if
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
RSS