Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan on Friday received Takinami Hirofumi, a member of Japan's House of Councillors representing the Liberal Democratic Party. The vice premier thanked Councillor Takinami for his longstanding promotion of Taiwan-Japan cooperation and for facilitating a resolution on Taiwan's participation in the World Health Organization (WHO), which was passed unanimously by the House of Councillors in June 2021. Vice Premier Cheng noted that Taiwan has formally submitted an application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and said he hoped Councillor Takinami will continue his support and assist the establishment of a working group for substantive discussions on Taiwan's accession.
Issues around regional security have attracted significant international attention in recent years, the vice premier said. Taiwan has become a focal point for upholding not just peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, but also the security of the wider global economy. The vice premier hopes that a quadrilateral semiconductor alliance with the U.S., Japan and South Korea will de-risk the supply chain through closer cooperation.
He also expressed hope that Japan's world-leading automotive industry can join forces with Taiwan's industry strengths in semiconductors, auto parts, and information and communications technology, and that both nations can continue to deepen cooperation on areas such as 5G, electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel.
Councillor Takinami in his remarks said that following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, Taiwan responded rapidly and with a wide range of protective measures, thus checking the spread of the virus and demonstrating that Taiwan leads the world in public health and disease control. Believing that Taiwan's successful experiences with the pandemic should be shared with the world, he promoted the House of Councillors resolution calling for Taiwan's participation in the WHO. When Taiwan had a vaccine shortage, Councillor Takinami also helped facilitate the donation of vaccine shipments to Taiwan, which he found to be richly rewarding work.