President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) met Japan’s representative to Taiwan Masaki Saito yesterday afternoon, putting an end to the silent treatment imposed on Saito after a comment he made in May about Taiwan’s status.
The interaction between Ma and Saito was lukewarm. The two men shook hands, but Ma hugged other guests and patted them on the arm. While welcoming Yamamoto and the delegation, Ma did not mention Saito by name.
Saito accompanied a delegation of Japanese parliamentarians, led by Junzo Yamamoto, to meet Ma at the Presidential Office.
Yamamoto donated ¥10 million (US$103,000) on behalf of the Japanese government to help the victims of Typhoon Morakot. The donation will be handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ East Asia Relations Commission and its Japanese counterpart, the Interchange Association, Taipei Office.
Yamamoto said Taipei should contact Tokyo “at any time” if it needed further assistance.
Ma thanked Tokyo for its generosity in the wake of the 921 Earthquake in 1999 and voiced concern over the damage in Japan caused by Tropical Storm Etau.
He reviewed the achievements over the past year to improve bilateral ties, saying the development of relations had been “fruitful.”
The administration has shut Saito out of high-level political contact since he said Taiwan’s status had remained undefined since Japan relinquished its control of the island following its defeat in World War II. He made the comment while attending the annual meeting of the Republic of China International Relations Association just days after Ma had said the 1952 Sino-Japanese Peace Treaty (also known as the Treaty of Taipei) affirmed the transfer of Taiwan’s sovereignty from Japan to the Republic of China (ROC).
Ma had previously said it was the 1943 Cairo Declaration that gave the ROC claim to Taiwan.
Saito apologized for his remark after the foreign ministry lodged a protest. He said he had been expressing his personal views and his comment did not reflect the position of the Japanese government.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus had urged the Executive Yuan to declare Saito persona non grata and asked Tokyo to recall him. Pro-unification groups also demanded he leave the country and that Tokyo apologize.
Independence supporters said neither Japan nor Saito had to apologize because he had “told the truth.”
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