Representative to the US Alexander Yui was invited by US Representative Michael McCaul, chairman of the US House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, to listen to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s address to the US Congress on Friday, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in Washington said.
Before Kishida’s address, Yui visited McCaul and discussed how to promote Taiwan-US cooperation in several fields, TECRO said.
“A pleasure to meet with Ambassador Yui of Taiwan, my guest to @JPN_PMO’s [Kishida] address to Congress today. We discussed additional ways in which the U.S. can support our partner Taiwan and promote greater cooperation and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific,” McCaul wrote on X.
 
                    Photo: Screen grab from US Representative Michael McCaul’s X account
Yui responded on X, saying: “Thank you Chairman @RepMcCaul for the kind invitation. I look forward to continue working with you to promote our shared values and common interests in the Indo-Pacific region.”
Kishida’s address at a joint meeting of the US Congress on Friday was titled “For the Future: Our Global Partnership.”
“As the geopolitical landscape changed and as Japan grew in confidence, we expanded our outlook beyond that of being America’s closest ally. We first became a regional partner of the United States, and now we have become your global partner,” Kishida said.
 
                    Photo: EPA-EFE
He said freedom and democracy are under threat around the globe.
“China’s current external stance and military actions present an unprecedented and the greatest strategic challenge, not only to the peace and security of Japan but to the peace and stability of the international community at large.”
“Ukraine of today may be East Asia of tomorrow,” he added.
 
                    Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In other news, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Canada, the US embassy in Ottawa and the University of Ottawa’s Information Integrity Lab on Friday held a Global Cooperation and Training Framework event titled “Building Democratic Resiliency Against Disinformation: Elections in Taiwan and Beyond” in the capital of Canada.
Opening remarks were given by Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁), US Ambassador to Canada David Cohen and Australian High Commissioner to Canada Scott Ryan.
Tseng said that Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy includes countering disinformation as a core issue, and facing complicated cognitive warfare tactics, Taiwan is ready to contribute to defending freedom and democracy with its democratic allies.
Cohen affirmed Taiwan’s achievements in countering disinformation, and quoted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who once said that “Taiwan is a powerful affirmation of democracy.”
The US is committed to maintaining cross-strait peace and stability and the peaceful resolution of differences without coercion and pressure, Cohen said, adding that Taiwan-US partnership is based on shared democratic values.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,

UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention

REASSURANCE: The US said Taiwan’s interests would not be harmed during the talk and that it remains steadfast in its support for the nation, the foreign minister said US President Donald Trump on Friday said he would bring up Taiwan with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) during a meeting on the sidelines of the APEC Summit in South Korea this week. “I will be talking about Taiwan [with Xi],” Trump told reporters before he departed for his trip to Asia, adding that he had “a lot of respect for Taiwan.” “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said. Taiwan has long been a contentious issue between the US and China.

GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on