- Japan’s Yoshihide Suga held a virtual summit on Thursday with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council chief Charles Michel
- The leaders also backed the holding of a safe and secure Olympic Games despite calls for the event to be cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic
The leaders of Japan and the European Union institutions referred to the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait in a joint statement following a virtual summit, a move indicating their concern over China’s assertive push in regional affairs.
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga held a video conference on Thursday with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council chief Charles Michel and later issued a statement that also said the leaders remained “seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas,” where Beijing has been projecting its naval might.
“We underscore the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and encourage the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues,” according to the statement.
The reference to Taiwan was the first in a statement from the leaders, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Thursday, citing several unidentified Japanese government sources.
It follows similar wording in a joint statement issued after Suga met US President Joe Biden last month, which sparked criticism from Beijing.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of its territory, and tensions between the two have worsened in recent months as Chinese military forces ratcheted up exercises in the area, raising the risk of a conflict that could draw in the US.
The meeting comes as several European countries seek more involvement in the security of the Asia-Pacific region, a key to global economic growth.
French troops took part in an exercise with Japan and the US on Japanese soil for the first time earlier this month, while Germany is expected to deploy a frigate to Asia later in the year.
The UK is also sending its new aircraft carrier, the Queen Elizabeth, on a tour including stops in Japan and South Korea, as part of its maiden voyage.
The EU and Japan also agreed that they favoured Tokyo’s hosting of the Olympic Games this year, despite concerns over the influx of athletes and officials as the country battles a fourth wave of Covid-19 infections.
“We support the holding of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 in a safe and secure manner this summer as a symbol of global unity in defeating Covid-19,” the EU and Japan said in a joint statement.
Japan’s vaccination drive has been glacially slow, with just over 5 per cent of the population having had a shot, and several polls have shown the majority of the Japanese public are opposed to holding the Games.
Von der Leyen said the EU had authorised the export to Japan of more than 100 million vaccine doses, enough to inoculate about 40 per cent of the population.
“We have of course said we are looking forward to the Olympic Games,” she said, adding that the vaccine shipments were a strong sign of EU support for preparations of a safe event.
