Outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on social media on Friday that Taiwan was “an extremely important partner” for Japan and that he believed relations between the two sides would continue to deepen.
Kishida, who earlier this week announced that he would not seek re-election as the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), made the comment in response to a post from President William Lai (賴清德) on X which thanked the Japanese prime minister for his support for Taiwan and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
Kishida hailed the “warm support from Taiwan,” which he described as “an extremely important partner” that shares fundamental values with Japan, such as freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
Photo: AP
“[I] believe that the kizuna… [Japanese word meaning deep emotional bond] between Japan and Taiwan will continue to deepen in the future,” he added.
Kishida said on Wednesday that he would not run for LDP president in his party’s election next month, meaning that he would step down as prime minister, a role that the 67-year-old has held for nearly three years.
Kishida’s decision to bow out came as the LDP — which has been in power almost continuously since its founding in 1955 — has become embroiled in political scandals in recent months, which have taken a toll on the prime minister’s support.
Relations between Taiwan and Japan have deepened under Kishida’s leadership, Lai said in the X post thanking the Japanese prime minister and expressing hope that both sides could cooperate further in addressing global challenges and pursuing prosperity.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press release on Friday that a delegation comprising more than 70 members of the LDP’s youth division would arrive in Taiwan tomorrow for a five-day visit.
Led by Japanese Representative Takako Suzuki, the overseas studies group includes eight House of Representative members and young LDP members from several regions in Japan, the ministry said.
In a related development, Taiwan’s newly appointed representative to Japan Lee Yi-yang (李逸洋) said on Friday he plans to focus on boosting bilateral cooperation in security, semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI) during his term.
The Presidential Office announced Lee would be Taiwan’s new envoy to Japan on Friday after Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) left the post last week after serving for eight years.
Lee, 69, is expected to take up the post next month, a source said.
In a media interview on Friday, Lee said that bilateral cooperation in the semiconductor and AI industries and security would be his main focus.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp have all recently invested in and set up factories in Japan, Lee said.
Taiwan, a semiconductor and AI chip manufacturing hub, has also welcomed Japanese enterprises, he added.
Japanese companies lead in certain technologies in the semiconductor and AI supply chains, said Lee, who cited the example of a new type of extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment — used for highly advanced chipmaking — recently reported to have been developed in Japan.
This new technology is reported to reduce power consumption by 90 percent, which Taiwan’s high-tech industry urgently needs, Lee said.
He also thanked the Japanese government for its numerous references to the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait following the Japan-US Security Consultative Committee meeting in 2021. Many countries have gone on to echo this stance.
He also said that the US recently announced a plan to upgrade the US Forces Japan command into a joint force headquarters with the Japanese for better coordination.
Cross-strait peace and stability are also crucial for economic prosperity, given that TSMC is responsible for producing 90 percent of the world’s highly advanced chips and the supply chain being at risk would damage the world economy, Lee said.
Therefore, exchanging information on security matters with Japan and the US would also be a priority, Lee added.
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