Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te "exuberantly" congratulated former Japanese economic security minister Sanae Takaichi on winning the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race on Saturday, calling her a steadfast friend of Taiwan.
In a post written in Japanese on X, the Taiwanese leader expressed his heartfelt congratulations and said he hopes Taiwan and Japan will deepen their exchanges and cooperation in various fields and elevate their relations to a new level to achieve security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
Many in Taiwan have high hopes for Takaichi, who follows the policy direction of the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who emphasized Japan-Taiwan relations.
During her trip to Taiwan in April, Takaichi met with Lai, and they agreed to communicate closely, including the sharing of defense-related information.
Takaichi told a news conference at the time that Japan and Taiwan, which do not have diplomatic ties, should openly strengthen practical nongovernmental relations. She called for promoting people-to-people exchanges and technological cooperation.
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