Taiwan-Japan Visits Reach New High, President Lai Hopes for More Cooperation

(CNA) - President Lai Ching-te met with Nikko Mayor Tetsuo Segawa today, highlighting that bilateral trade between Taiwan and Japan exceeded US$84.8 billion last year, a 17.36% increase from the previous year. The number of mutual visits also surpassed 8.21 million, setting a new historical record. He expressed hope for more cooperative achievements, making local exchanges an important force for the steady development of Taiwan-Japan relations.

In a press release from the Presidential Office, President Lai stated that this visit by Segawa, his first since taking office last year, leading the "Nikko Citizen's Ship" to Taiwan, is particularly meaningful. Whether as president or former Tainan mayor, he has always looked forward to such visits.

The President pointed out that Tainan City and Nikko City share a very precious and deep friendship. The two sides established a "Tourism Friendship City" agreement as early as 2009. During his tenure as Tainan mayor, after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, he led a delegation to Nikko to support local tourism. Nikko City sent a delegation to visit Taiwan in 2014 and launched fundraising efforts for the Tainan earthquake in 2016 and the Hualien earthquake the year before last, assisting Taiwan in post-disaster reconstruction. He expressed his sincerest gratitude.

The President mentioned that Taiwan and Japan have long faced challenges such as typhoons, earthquakes, and pandemics together, serving as important partners supporting each other. Both sides have actively expanded cooperation in fields such as economy, trade, technology, culture, and tourism. Last year, bilateral trade between Taiwan and Japan exceeded US$84.8 billion, a 17.36% increase from the previous year, and the number of mutual visits surpassed 8.21 million, setting a new historical record.

President Lai expressed his belief that with Segawa's visit, Taiwan and Nikko City will surely be able to create more cooperative achievements based on the existing strong foundation, making local exchanges an important force for the steady development of Taiwan-Japan relations.

Segawa stated that yesterday he led approximately 80 Nikko citizens and tourism industry representatives to visit Tainan City. Nikko City and Tainan City have been "Tourism Friendship Cities" for 17 years. After the Great East Japan Earthquake, then-Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te led 300 Tainan citizens to Nikko to support the local tourism industry, a gesture that Nikko citizens still remember with deep gratitude.

Segawa mentioned that Tainan City suffered from earthquakes and typhoons last year. This time, he specifically led the "Citizen's Ship" to visit Tainan again, hoping to cheer each other on and looking forward to continued cooperation with Tainan City in the future to jointly promote exchanges in tourism, sports, culture, and economy, thereby deepening bilateral relations. (Editor: Hsieh Chia-chen) 1150708

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