Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reiterated the importance of stability across the Taiwan Strait while Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強) said Taiwan issues are “a red line” for China.
Kishida and Li traveled to Seoul for the first China-Japan-South Korea trilateral summit since 2019, which was held yesterday.
Before the three leaders met, Kishida, Li and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol held bilateral meetings on Sunday.
Photo: Kyodo News via AP
During the meeting with Li, Kishida “reiterated that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is extremely important to the international community, including Japan,” the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Japan is closely monitoring developments across the Taiwan Strait, including “the recent military situation,” it said.
Kishida was referring to the “Joint Sword-2024A” military exercise Beijing launched around Taiwan on Thursday and Friday last week, Sankei Shimbun cited a source traveling together with the prime minister as saying.
Kishida also expressed “serious concerns” about China’s increased military activities around Japan, including the Senkaku Islands, called the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) in Taiwan and China, and the East China Sea, while asking for the immediate removal of buoys that China set up within Japan’s exclusive economic zone, the ministry said.
Li said that issues regarding Taiwan and history are “matters of principle related to China’s core interests and also matters of faith,” Kyodo News reported on Sunday.
“In particular, the Taiwan issue is the core of China’s core interests and is a red line,” Li said, which Kyodo News said was an attempt to “keep Japan in check.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Kishida reached an important agreement to promote a “mutually beneficial relationship based on common strategic interests” when they met in San Francisco in November last year.
“It is hoped that Japan would keep its promise and create a positive atmosphere for the continuous development of bilateral relations,” China News Service cited Li as saying.
Kishida said that Japan’s position regarding Taiwan as stated in the Japan-China Joint Communique of 1972 has not changed, it reported.
The document states that Japan would sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan, with which it would deepen non-governmental practical cooperation mainly in the economic field, Kyodo News said.
After the trilateral meeting yesterday, the three leaders said they agreed to strengthen cooperation with ASEAN countries and countries in the Middle East as a response to international issues such as the threats posed by North Korea and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The issue about the Taiwan Strait was not mentioned in the joint statement issued after the meeting.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
RSS