[Epoch Times, May 13, 2022](Epoch Times reporter Zhong Yuan Taiwan comprehensive report) Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held the “Japan-EU Summit” with the President of the European Council and the European Commission on the 12th and issued a joint statement, emphasizing that Peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are extremely important. Kishida said that no matter where in the world, the use of force to unilaterally change the status quo will never be tolerated.
Ou Jiangan, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China, said on the 13th that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, President of the European Council Charles Michel and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen held a “28th meeting” in Tokyo on the 12th. The 2018 EU Summit”, issued a joint statement after the meeting emphasizing the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and encouraging the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues.
Ou Jiangan said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs highly welcomes and expresses sincere gratitude to the Japan-EU Joint Statement for attaching importance to the security of the Taiwan Strait, which once again demonstrates that maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is a high-level consensus of international democratic countries.
She pointed out that at a time when the authoritarian system is aggressing and expanding outward, challenging the rules-based global democratic order, and causing instability in the international situation, Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with like-minded partners such as Japan and EU countries to jointly defend international justice and freedom The shared value of democracy.
According to the Central News Agency, at the beginning of the summit, Kishida pointed out that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is shaking the fundamentals of the international order. Japan should coordinate and cooperate with the European Union to impose strong sanctions on Russia, strengthen support for Ukraine, and continue to show firm determination to respond. .
Kishida also said that the security guarantees of Europe and the Indo-Pacific are inseparable. No matter where in the world, the status quo will never be unilaterally changed by force. Japan and Europe, which share basic values, will work together to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Both Michel and van von der Leyen thanked Japan for imposing tough sanctions on Russia and cooperating with Europe over Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. As partners in sharing an international order based on fundamental values and rules, Japan and the EU will strengthen cooperation in trade, climate, digital, and Indo-Pacific.
Regarding the international and regional situation, both Japan and Europe believe that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is a serious situation that shakes the foundations of the international order in Europe and Asia, and reaffirms that the international community headed by the Group of Seven (G7) must unite and cooperate to respond to importance.
At this Japan-EU summit, both sides exchanged views on the situation in East Asia. They felt strongly that some countries in the East China Sea and the South China Sea were trying to unilaterally change the status quo by force, strengthen their military power in a rapid and opaque manner, and activate their military operations in the region. concern.
Both Japan and Europe believe that the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait and the peaceful settlement of cross-strait issues are extremely important, and they are also deeply concerned about the situation in Hong Kong and the human rights situation in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Both sides agreed to resolutely respond to countries’ attempts to change the status quo and impose economic coercion.
Japan and the EU also exchanged views on the situation in North Korea. We are deeply worried about North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and missiles, including the frequent launch of ballistic missiles. At the same time, Japan and the EU have agreed to continue to cooperate and jointly deal with the issue of the abduction of Japanese by North Korea.
Japan’s “Sankei Shimbun” reported that the Japan-EU regular leaders’ summit reaffirmed that the two sides will cooperate to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific. For the CCP, which is tacitly acquiescing in Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Europe has a heightened sense of threat. Japan and Europe will strengthen strategic cooperation with China, hoping to help the US-Japan summit expected to be held later this month as well as the US, Japan, Australia , India “Quad Security Dialogue” (Quad) summit.
The report said that Kishida pointed out the need for cooperation between Japan and the EU at the Japan-EU summit, but first made it clear that the CCP threatened the EU. Michelle emphasized that close attention should be paid to the CCP, which is stepping up its offensive, and it is necessary for Japan and Europe to work together.
The report said that when Kishida held a leadership meeting with visiting Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin at the Prime Minister’s Residence (Administration Center) on the morning of the 12th, the opening part of the meeting, which was open to the media, did not directly name the CCP; but Marin said, Russia’s war on Ukraine has dramatically changed the global environment, and China may be thinking about how to use force.
The EU has always focused on economic relations. Recently, it has readjusted its attitude towards the CCP, mainly because the EU believes that the CCP’s powerful attitude towards human rights violations in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is problematic.
Kishida attaches great importance to the diplomacy between Japan and Europe, and recently visited the United Kingdom and Italy one after another. In the future, we will actively build the main axis of confrontation with the CCP through the Quartet Security Dialogue. When the Japan-EU regular leaders’ meeting was held in May last year, all the participants agreed that “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are very important”. Later, the leaders’ joint declaration of the G7 summit in June last year included “peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is very important” for the first time.
Responsible editor: Ye Ziwei#