Japan, Taiwan Ruling Parties Vow Cooperation for Taiwan Strait Stability

Tokyo, Sept. 14 (Jiji Press)--Policy officials from Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party agreed Monday to strengthen cooperation to promote peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

In a policy dialogue held at the LDP's headquarters in Tokyo, the two sides mainly discussed diplomacy and security, including responses to Chinese military and economic coercion.

It was the first such meeting since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office last October.

In the gathering, Keisuke Suzuki, head of an LDP task force on Taiwan policies, emphasized the importance of deterrence against China. He said that Japan and Taiwan need to deepen their shared understanding on issues including reducing their economic dependence on China.

Kuo Kuo-wen, a DPP member of the Legislative Yuan, Taiwan's parliament, said that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are deeply connected to those in Japan.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]