Taiwan received its first visit from a top member of Japan’s ruling party in 19 years, a trip that comes as Tokyo prepares a hefty boost in military spending to counter threats from countries like China.
(Bloomberg) — Taiwan received its first visit from a top member of Japan’s ruling party in 19 years, a trip that comes as Tokyo prepares a hefty boost in military spending to counter threats from countries like China.
Koichi Hagiuda, policy chief of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party, met with President Tsai Ing-wen on Saturday.
Tsai told Hagiuda Taiwan will continue to deepen partnerships with Japan and work together to facilitate openness and stability in the Indo Pacific region.
She urged Japan to support Taiwan’s membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Hagiuda told Tsai that Taiwan is an important partner that shares common values, including freedom, democracy and rule of law, with Japan.
The senior LDP member told a forum in Taipei on Sunday that he supports Taiwan’s participation in CPTPP and that Tokyo doesn’t want the status quo altered by the use of force.
Hagiuda, whose role allows him to steer the LDP’s course, said he hoped to have “frank discussions” with Tsai on security issues as China steps up pressure on the self-governed island, the Nikkei newspaper reported earlier.
The visit is significant because it comes just days after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ordered a sharp hike in defense spending.
The money is set to be used for items such as stockpiling missiles capable of striking military targets in China, Russia and North Korea.
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Hagiuda will “likely communicate Japan’s intentions with its additional defense budgets pertaining to Taiwan,” said Wen-ti Sung, a specialist on Taiwanese politics and cross-strait relations at Australian National University.
It was also “likely intended to normalize frequent exchanges at this level going forward and to touch base with presumptive presidential candidates.”
The Japanese politician also took time off in Taiwan to visit the headquarters of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s biggest maker of made-to-order chips, and met with its managers, the Nikkei reported.
His visit to TSMC comes with ongoing supply-chain problems in the chip industry and growing US efforts to restrict Beijing’s access to high-end technology.
Japan and Taiwan will further enhance their partnership on chips, Hagiuda was cited by the Nikkei as saying.
He told reporters following the meeting that he wants to establish a supply-chain system that would prevent chip shortages under any circumstances, with cooperation between TSMC and Japanese companies, the newspaper reported on Sunday.
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The LDP frequently sends lawmakers to Taiwan to push back at efforts by China to isolate it.
Kishida has warned that Taiwan is at the frontline of the standoff between China and the US, and a problem in the Taiwan Strait would have enormous consequences for Japan.
Beijing claims the island as part of its territory to be taken by force if necessary, though Tsai insists it is already a de facto nation deserving broader recognition.
Hagiuda’s visit comes at a challenging time for the Taiwan leader, whose Democratic Progressive Party last month suffered its worst loss in local elections since its founding in 1986.
That defeat sets up a more contentious presidential race focused on rising tensions with China in 2024, when Tsai leaves office due to term limits.
–With assistance from Debby Wu and Yoshiaki Nohara.
(Updates with report of visit to chip company from ninth paragraph.)
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