Taiwan's diplomatic activities in Japan are likely to undergo a major shift, resulting in a new emphasis on US-Japan-Taiwan security links, Taiwan's top representative in Japan said recently.
The shift will be the most significant of its kind since Japan severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1972, said Lo Fu-chen (羅福全), head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan, on Sunday.
"The most important area of work in Japan will be determining Taiwan's interests in a US-Japan alliance," Lo said.
Taiwan's diplomatic activities will need a broader vision than traditional diplomatic exchanges with members of the Japanese parliament, academia, cultural circles and youth, Lo said.
Japan has become an important partner for the US since the Bush administration took over, Lo said, citing the waning influence of China hands in the US administration, in contrast to the rising clout of pro-Japan officials.
Lo also added that the US-Japan alliance is moving beyond bilateral ties, as evident in US Secretary of State Colin Powell's request that Japan play a more active role in the event of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
"If Taiwan can provide concrete views on the future direction of the US-Japan alliance, then it will not only bring Taiwan-Japan relations to a new level, but will also increase Taiwan's bargaining chips in its relations with the US," Lo said.
In the past, both the US and Japan viewed Taiwan through the eyes of pro-China officials, Lo said, which tended to make the two governments support the idea that Taiwan is a part of China and act accordingly toward Taiwan.
The Bush administration is not leaving China issues in the hands of such pro-China officials, but instead is bringing in global strategists to handle them, Lo said.
"What Taiwan needs to do is work out how to get Japan's US experts and the US' Japan experts to fit Taiwan into their strategic thinking, rather than simply letting their China experts handle all Taiwan-related issues to Taiwan's detriment," Lo said.
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