Press Release

Legislative Yuan

January 19, 2023

Legislative Yuan President You Si-kun meets a Japanese parliamentary delegation led by Representative Yasumasa Nagasawa

You Si-kun: Taiwan and Japan enjoy a brotherhood and a shared and enjoy a friendship marked by mutual support

Accompanies by Legislators Chen Ching-min and Chen I-hsin; Taiwan People’s Party Whip Chiu Chen-yuan; Legislator Chen Jiau-hua; Secretary General Lin Jih-jia; Consultant Chou Ya-shu; Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Deputy Representative Akira Yokochi; and Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Secretary General Chou Shyue-yow from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Legislative Yuan President You Si-kun welcomed Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party Representative Yasumasa Nagasawa and his delegation.

President You began his remarks by welcoming the distinguished guests and wishing them a happy Lunar New Year. He continued by stating that the previous October, Representative Nagasawa had visited Taiwan with the members of the Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council and visited his hometown of Yilan to have a distant look at Yonaguni island from Su’ao. Participants all learned more about the closeness of Taiwan and Japan. Last November, when Speaker You led a group to Japan, he met with Representative Nagasawa at a dinner banquet hosted by the Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council. Today marks the third time they met. He expressed gratitude to Representative Nagasawa for his longstanding support of Taiwan.

President You continued by saying he was delighted to meet Representative Yuko Nakagawa. He said that late outstanding statesman Shoichi Nakagawa had been his friend and that he greatly missed him. Although he had passed away some time ago, You said he thought of him often. President You commended Representative Nakagawa on his farsightedness concerning China’s threat. President You remembered that Representative Nakagawa had told him that the “peaceful rise” of China was but a mask. When serving as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries; Minister of Finance; and Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Nakagawa was always a friend to Taiwan. Since his passing, we have been fortunate to have his widow, Representative Yuko Nakagawa, continue his vision and support Taiwan while meeting the expectations of Japanese voters. On behalf of Taiwan’s legislature, President You expressed his deepest respect to Representative Nakagawa.

President You stated that the people of Taiwan were saddened at the sudden death of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe last July. Abe was Taiwan’s good friend who had provided Taiwan with a great deal of support. Thanks to his assistance, when Taiwan’s pandemic situation was intense and Taiwan was also facing relentless repression by China, the Japanese government shared 4.2 million vaccine doses with Taiwan. This was like much-needed rain falling, helping Taiwan overcome the crisis. Taiwanese people agreed afterward that Japan was indeed Taiwan’s true friend.

President You continued by stating that China is an authoritarian country. With its economic rise, it has held to traditional political thinking that “those who affront China must pay, even if a thousand miles away.” It engages in repression at home and expansionism abroad, as seen through its wolf-warrior diplomacy. China has increased Indo-Pacific tensions and poses a severe threat to global peace.

President You continued by saying that last November, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had underscored the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait when meeting with China’s leader Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Bangkok. When interviewed by US media on January 11 this year, he stated: “Ukraine today may be Asia tomorrow” and stressed that “a unilateral change of status quo through the use of force is not acceptable.” When Japan’s Ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami was interviewed by Australian media last week, he stated that China cannot dominate the Asia-Pacific region. He called on democracies to work together to defend Taiwan’s democracy. On behalf of Taiwan’s legislature, President You expressed his deepest thanks to the Japanese government for its sentiments underscoring the importance stability in the Taiwan Strait to the international community. 

Taiwan’s democracy is the result of a century of struggle, President You shared. Today, following three alternations of political party in power, Taiwan has become the most important bulwark of democracy in the Chinese-speaking world. Japan and Taiwan share the universal values of freedom and democracy. He then said he hopes the two countries will further cooperation and realize the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific. He then again thanked the Japanese government. Whenever Taiwan confronts difficulties and challenges, Japan always provides staunch support. The people of Taiwan are grateful for Japanese efforts to promote agricultural and fishery products and sharing vaccine does with Taiwan in six rounds. The two peoples of our two countries are, he closed, indeed close.

Representatives Nagasawa began his remarks by saying that Taiwan would begin its Lunar New Year holiday the following day. He was grateful to have the opportunity to meet President You on this last working day. Representative Nagasawa said that Taiwan and Japan share the values of democracy and freedom. Both sides have intensive economic and people-to-people exchanges and have established solid relations. He then spoke about the Japanese cross-party delegation of parliamentarians that attended Taiwan’s National Day celebrations last year. It was quite the memorable thing to view the parade at the square before the Presidential Office. He was grateful that, despite his busy schedule, President You had led the delegation to Yilan and had them look from afar at Yonaguni Island, visible on sunny days. President You also showed them around many beautiful parks and scenic spots in Yilan. Representative Nagasawa stated that Liberal Democratic Party members stand in support of former Prime Minister Abe’s statement that “a Taiwan emergency is a Japanese emergency, and therefore an emergency for the Japan-US alliance.” Taiwan is Japan’s closest friend. He said he believes that Japan should cherish such friendship and strengthen exchanges and cooperation with Taiwan in all areas.       

The two sides then exchanged gifts, and President You hosted a luncheon featuring Taiwanese cuisine in honor of the delegation, at which the two sides exchanged opinions on a wide range of topics. The banquet concluded at 2 p.m. amid a pleasant atmosphere. 

A translation of President You’s remarks is follows:

Representatives Yasumasa Nagasawa, Akimasa Ishikawa, Hirohisa Takagi, and Yuko Nakagawa; Legislators Chen Ching-min and Chen I-hsin; Taiwan People’s Party Whip Chiu Chen-yuan; Legislator Chen Jiau-hua; Secretary General Lin Jih-jia; Consultant Chou Ya-shu; Deputy Representative at the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Akira Yokochi; Secretary General of the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Chou Shyue-yow from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; dear colleagues; ladies and gentlemen:

Good afternoon!

I am delighted to welcome all of our distinguished guests to the Legislative Yuan. On behalf of the Legislative Yuan, I want to extend a sincere welcome to you and wish you a very happy Lunar New Year. Last October, Representative Nagasawa visited Taiwan with the members of the Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council and visited my hometown of Yilan to look from afar at Yonaguni Island from Su’ao. We all felt the closeness of Taiwan and Japan and that we are brothers. Last November, when I led a delegation to Japan, I met with Representative Nagasawa at a dinner banquet hosted by the Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council. And today we meet for a third time. I want to express my gratitude to Representative Nagasawa for your longstanding support of Taiwan.  

I am also pleased to meet Representative Yuko Nakagawa. The late great statesman Shoichi Nakagawa was a good friend who I miss a lot. Although he has been gone for some years now, I think of him often. He had the farsightedness to warn the world of China’s threat. I still remember he told me that the “peaceful rise” of China was but a mask. As Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries; Minister of Finance; and Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, he was a good friend of Taiwan’s. Since his passing, we have been fortunate to have his widow, Yuko Nakagawa, continue to promote his vision, support Taiwan, and work hard to meet the expectations of voters. On behalf of Taiwan’s legislature, I want to express my deepest respects. 

The people of Taiwan were saddened by the sudden death of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe last July. Prime Minister Abe was Taiwan’s good friend who provided us staunch support. Thanks to his assistance, when the pandemic was raging in Taiwan and China was imposing relentless pressure, the Japanese government shared 4.2 million vaccine doses with us. This was like much-needed rain, and helped us overcome this challenge. The people of Taiwan are unanimous in believing that Japan is truly our friend. China is an authoritarian country. With its economic rise, it has held to the traditional political mindset that “those who affront China must pay, even if a thousand miles away.” It engages in repression at home and expansion abroad and has adopted wolf-warrior diplomacy. China has also increased Indo-Pacific tensions and poses a severe threat to global peace.

Last November, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida underscored the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait when meeting China’s leader Xi Jinping at Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Bangkok. When interviewed by US media on January 11, he said, “Ukraine today may be Asia tomorrow” and stressed that “a unilateral change of status quo through the use of force will not be acceptable.” When Japan’s Ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami was interviewed by Australian media last week, he stated that China cannot dominate the Asia-Pacific region. He called on democracies to work together to defend Taiwan’s democracy. On behalf of Taiwan’s legislature, I want to express my deepest thanks to the Japanese government for underscoring the importance of stability in the Taiwan Strait to the international community. 

Taiwan’s democracy is the result of a century of hard work. Today, following three alternations of political party in power, Taiwan is a bulwark of democracy in the Chinese-speaking world. Japan and Taiwan share the universal values of freedom and democracy. I hope that we can deepen our cooperation and realize the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific. I want to take this opportunity to thank the Japanese government once again. Whenever Taiwan has confronted difficulties and challenges, Japan has always provided staunch support. The people of Taiwan are grateful for Japanese efforts to share agricultural and fishery products as well as six batches of vaccine doses. The people of our countries are indeed close.

As I conclude, we are on the eve of Lunar New Year. So, I wish you all a pleasant and successful stay, our two countries everlasting friendship, and all of you Happy New Year. Thank you.