Members of the Japan Reform Association call for deepening defense and technological cooperation between Taiwan and Japan

Former leader of the Japan Reform Party Nobuyuki Baba, left, and head of the Japan-Republic of China Friendship Research Group, met and clinked glasses with President Lai Ching-te at the Presidential Palace in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Screenshot of the Presidential Palace’s Flickr page

/ Reporter of this newspaper and Central News Agency

Senior members of the Japan Reform Party (JIP) yesterday called for deepening cooperation between Tokyo and Taipei, including in the fields of drones and space technology, to cope with modern defense needs and promote regional peace and stability.

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Nobuyuki Baba, the former leader of the Japan Reform Party and head of the party's Japan-Republic of China Friendship Research Group, met with President Lai Ching-te (Lai Ching-te) at the Presidential Palace in Taipei earlier yesterday to discuss bilateral relations, US-China relations and other issues.

At the press conference, Nobuyuki Baba thanked Taiwan for its generous donation in response to the magnitude 7.1 earthquake in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan, which occurred at the end of last month, causing extensive infrastructure damage, traffic disruption, and killing at least 38 people.

"Genuine friendship emerges in adversity," he said, adding that Japan and Taiwan have always supported each other in times of crisis.

The Taiwanese government stated that a special bank account set up to receive private donations to support earthquake-stricken areas has raised more than NT$300 million (approximately US$9.51 million).

The government also donated NT$5 million to support reconstruction efforts in Kumamoto, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.

Nobuyuki Baba said that his delegation and Lai Qingde reached a consensus that the two sides should continue to deepen cooperation and exchanges in the fields of economy, culture, tourism and natural disaster prevention.

In terms of regional security, Nobuyuki Baba said that Lai Qingde told him that Taiwan is strengthening its own defense capabilities.

The Japanese government is also considering strengthening its own defense capabilities as regional and global tensions rise, he said.

The Japan Reform Party, as a junior coalition partner of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), also hopes to use drones and space technology to revolutionize national defense and logistics to meet the challenges posed by modern warfare, Baba said.

Tokyo and Taipei should work together to complement each other's capabilities and jointly develop cutting-edge technologies, including drones, he said.

During the meeting, Lai told the Japanese Reform Party delegation that Taiwan looks forward to establishing a closer partnership with Japan under the framework of the Liberal Democratic Party-Reform Party alliance to jointly build a "non-red" supply chain, thereby enhancing the resilience of supply chains in democratic countries around the world and strengthening economic and trade cooperation, Lai said.

In addition, yesterday, a delegation from Japan's cross-party parlamentar group "Parliamentarians Association for Peace and Stability across the Taiwan Strait" arrived in Taipei for a three-day visit.

The delegation was led by Jiro Kitamura, a member of the Japanese Senate and a member of the Conservative Party.

Jiro Kitamura said Taiwan is Japan's most important friend, adding that peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are not only important to Taiwan but "vital" to Japan's survival.

He specifically pointed out two legislative goals, referring to the Taiwan Relations Act and the Taiwan Tourism Act of the United States.

He said Japan must "spare no effort" to pass Japanese versions of the two laws so that Japan can work with the United States to continue conveying Japan's close relationship with Taiwan and its people to the world.

"Only by doing this can we take the most critical step towards maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," he said.

Additional reporting by Weili Fang

News source: Taipei Times

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