“It’s rare for lawmakers to visit Taiwan for security purposes,” said Shigeru Ishiba, a former secretary-general of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, yesterday. “We want to gain knowledge on the ground,” he said.
Taiwan’s ministry of foreign affairs welcomed his arrival that day. Ishiba was accompanied by a group of Japanese lawmakers from a broad swath of parties, including former defence minister Yasukazu Hamada.
With Tokyo and Taipei lacking formal diplomatic ties, lawmakers provide a crucial conduit for relationship-building, which has become especially important now as the island takes on greater significance in regional security. Taiwan sits only about 110km from the closest point of Okinawa Prefecture, and any conflict there would likely embroil Japan.
In addition to meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen and vice president William Lai, the Japanese delegation’s trip includes visiting the ministry of national defence to discuss Taiwan’s defences and Chinese military activity in the Taiwan Strait and speaking with National Security Council officials.
“When it comes to security, it makes no difference whether you’re in a ruling or opposition party,” said former foreign minister Seiji Maehara, a member of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party. “Realistic security policy is critical no matter where you stand,” he said.
This follows a trip on Monday by Taiwan-friendly LDP lawmaker Keisuke Suzuki and a visit by an LDP youth delegation in May. Earlier, top lawmakers in charge of foreign affairs and defence policy for the LDP and Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party met last summer in what the Japanese side considers a ruling party version of a “two-plus-two” meeting.
This is another area where Tokyo has been moving in step with the US president Joe Biden’s administration has frequently sent unofficial delegations to Taiwan. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may travel there next month in what would be the first visit by a sitting leader of Congress’ lower chamber since 1997.
Japan recognised the People’s Republic of China as the “sole legal government of China” when it normalised relations with Beijing in 1972 and now characterises its relationship with Taiwan as “working relations on a nongovernmental basis.” Top officials in Tokyo do not meet officially with counterparts in Taipei, with such talks instead handled by lawmakers.
Abe had been central to building ties in recent years. After stepping down as prime minister in 2020, he served as an advisor to a Japan-Taiwan parliamentary friendship group that has long served as a key link between the two. He had hoped to visit the island after this month’s upper house election in Japan.
He worked to promote cooperation among legislators in Japan, Taiwan and the US through steps such as a strategic policy dialogue last summer. He said in December that “an emergency in Taiwan is an emergency for Japan and therefore an emergency for the Japan-US alliance.”
The former prime minister was close to Tsai, whom he met with virtually in March to discuss the Russian invasion of Ukraine and bilateral ties. Lai attended a private funeral for Abe in his personal capacity.
Some in the LDP have expressed alarm over the impact of Abe’s death on Tokyo’s ties with Taipei.
“I want to carry out Abe’s wishes alongside like-minded lawmakers and build an even more robust relationship with Taiwan,” LDP policy chief Sanae Takaichi said in a speech Sunday.
“We may no longer have Abe symbolically pulling things along, but it’s important that lawmakers form strong bonds with Taiwan to build a broader base,” said Akihisa Nagashima, a lower house lawmaker who was part of yesterday’s delegation.