On the evening of the 26th, President Tsai Ing-wen and Vice President Lai Ching-toku attended a reception to celebrate the Emperor's birthday in Taiwan.
This is the first time that a sitting president and vice president have attended since the severing of diplomatic ties with Japan in 1972, reflecting the growing closer ties between Japan and Taiwan in recent years.
On the evening of the 26th, the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, Japan's contact organization for Taiwan, held a reception to celebrate the Emperor's birthday at a hotel in Taipei.
The reception was attended by President Tsai Ing-wen, Vice President Lai Ching-de, and the top legislative official, Han Yu.
President Tsai delivered her congratulatory address, saying, ``We who have gathered here today celebrate the birthday of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, and wish for continued friendship between Taiwan and Japan.''
Vice President Lai, who will become the next president in May, said, ``I hope that Taiwan and Japan can not only further strengthen economic exchanges and people-to-people exchanges, but also contribute more to the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.'' I look forward to strengthening our cooperation."
Receptions to celebrate the Emperor's birthday in Taiwan ceased after Japan normalized diplomatic relations with China in 1972 and severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but they resumed in 2003.
According to people involved, when the event first resumed, Japan refrained from even formally inviting Taiwan's foreign minister out of consideration for Japan-China relations, but as time went on, the level of VIPs from Taiwan rose. I was there.
This was the first time that the current president and vice president attended, reflecting the deepening of Japan-Taiwan relations in recent years.