Taiwan’s existence is “very, very important” to Japan, Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Chief Representative Kazuyuki Katayama told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview published yesterday.
Katayama in the interview conducted on Monday emphasized the importance of Taiwan-Japan ties based on economic and geopolitical proximity, and their shared values of democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law.
Taiwan and Japan share close economic ties, with the trade volume of agricultural and animal husbandry products seeing new recent developments, said the envoy, who has held the position for a year.
Photo: Huang Chun-hsuan, Taipei Times
Katayama’s comments referred to Japan importing Taiwan-raised brown-marbled grouper and pitaya, while Taiwan relaxed restrictions on Japanese produce and husbandry products.
Katayama said that 4.2 million Taiwanese visited Japan last year and the total is expected to exceed 5 million this year, a record.
Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are crucial to Taiwan, Japan and other countries, he said.
Cross-strait relations should be resolved peacefully and Japan opposes any unilateral changes to the “status quo,” he added.
Taiwan and Japan face the same issues, Katayama said, adding that during his year in Taiwan, he could not stress enough how vital the two nations’ relationship is.
Asked about the future of bilateral ties, Katayama cited former representative to Japan Frank Hsieh’s (謝長廷) comments that while Taiwan and Japan are on mutually good terms, both sides should still work to improve and maintain the relationship.
Katayama cited interaction between young Japanese and Taiwanese as an example of the warm ties.
Relations depend on future generations, and encouraging young Taiwanese to study or work in Japan is part of that, he said.
Katayama said he hoped to chat with young Taiwanese to understand their opinions and their views toward Japanese.
On Wednesday, the Tourism Administration said in a statement that more than 1 million Japanese visited Taiwan in the first 10 months of this year, an increase of nearly 50 percent compared with the same period last year.
The growth indicates that the number of Japanese visitors would reach a new high for this fourth quarter since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said.
Japan was the second-largest source of inbound visitors to Taiwan in the first eight months of the year, accounting for 16 percent of all arrivals, following Hong Kong, which contributed 16.2 percent, Tourism Administration data showed.
To attract more Japanese tourists, the agency has partnered with Taipei 101 to launch a baseball-themed special exhibition featuring the ball that Japanese star Shohei Ohtani hit for his 50th home run in this season’s Major League Baseball in the US, the statement said.
A Taiwanese company acquired the ball, dubbed “the most valuable baseball of all time,” for US$4.392 million at an auction held by Goldin Auctions last month.
A light show is to turn the tuned mass damper in Taipei 101 into a giant baseball, the agency said.
Tourism Administration data showed that 6.49 million overseas visitors had arrived in Taiwan this year as of Tuesday, surpassing the 6.48 million in the whole of last year, although the number still falls short of pre-pandemic levels.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS