Japan-US talks spark fresh support

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi late last month made ripples throughout Japan and the region with her charm offensive during US President Donald Trump’s Tokyo visit. Their camaraderie appeared as if it was a reunion of old friends, despite being their first in-person meeting. The leaders vowed to deepen economic and security cooperation and signed a framework agreement on the supply of critical minerals and rare earths. Noteworthy is not only how the supply of such minerals is vital to Taiwan’s economic resilience, but how Taiwan came up in the summit and Takaichi’s bold public support for its neighbor.

Taiwan’s semiconductor industry relies heavily on rare earths while the country works to bolster its artificial intelligence capabilities.

During the meeting, major Japanese and American suppliers to Taiwanese chipmakers — such as Hitachi, Murata, Mitsubishi, optical fiber maker Fujikura and MitraChem, cofounded by a Taiwanese American — came up as potential partners in the new framework agreement. Japan and the US would work with other international partners to ensure supply chain security.

That fits into President William Lai’s (賴清德) “non-red” supply chain initiative. Taiwan can make inroads here, especially with Takaichi’s emphasis on working with regional like-minded partners to build resilient supply chains. Clearly, the agreement is intended to counter the dominance of China in rare earths — it processes about 90 percent of the world’s supply.

Another key area discussed was energy security. Given that Taiwan imports more than 90 percent of its energy products, it is an area that direly needs addressing. The new US-Japan framework could provide an opportunity for Taiwan to contribute, while also diversifying its energy sources.

Trump and Takaichi reiterated the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait by opposing unilateral attempts to change the “status quo” by force or coercion. Takaichi also echoed the same message at the ASEAN and APEC summits last month. That proactive approach to Taiwan policy was welcomed in Taipei, with Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) issuing a statement of appreciation.

However, Takaichi’s departure from a more muted Taiwan approach taken by her immediate predecessor, former Japanese prime minister Shigeru Ishiba, did not stop during her “energetic” diplomacy — a term coined by Japan’s largest opposition party leader, Yoshihiko Noda, to praise her successful meeting with Trump.

During a Japanese House of Representatives budget committee meeting on Friday last week, Takaichi became the first sitting prime minister to directly link a Taiwan contingency with Japan’s self-defense. She explicitly said that “if warships are used and there is military action, it could clearly be seen as a crisis that threatens Japan’s existence.” She added that a Chinese blockade and the deployment of drones might also trigger Japanese military intervention.

Alongside Takaichi’s record public support — more than 80 percent of Japanese aged 18 to 39 support her Cabinet — the message fits well with Japanese public sentiment, with about 80 percent saying they are either wary of China or support minimizing interaction with Beijing, consistent with the widely referenced Sasakawa Peace Foundation’s 2025 Survey on Japanese views of China.

Beijing’s “wolf warrior” diplomats responded aggressively, with Chinese Consul General in Osaka Xue Jian (薛劍) going on social media to call Takaichi stupid and making a comment about chopping off her head if she stuck out her “dirty neck.” That drew wide criticism of China from all of Japan’s major political parties, while Tokyo lodged a strong rebuke to Beijing.

Chinese reactions are just another sign of why such security assurances and other forms of support for Taiwan and Takaichi’s pragmatism in holding firm against Chinese hegemonic ambitions are a game changer for Taipei.

This article was previously published on Taipei Times on November 13 2025.