Taiwan premier makes first Japan visit since 1972, defying China
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Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai said he was in Tokyo to watch the game between Taiwan and the Czech Republic on March 7 and paid for the trip out of his own pocket.
PHOTO: REUTERS
TAIPEI – Taiwan’s Premier made a personal trip to Japan and appeared in public to watch the island’s baseball team in action, a rare visit that risks deteriorating Tokyo’s ties with China further.
Premier Cho Jung-tai said he was in Tokyo to watch the game between Taiwan and the Czech Republic on March 7 and paid for the trip out of his own pocket, he told reporters in Taipei on March 8.
“My only arrangement there was to cheer for Team Taiwan with our compatriots,” Mr Cho said, adding there was “no other objective” for the trip.
The visit marks the first time a premier from the self-ruled democracy has publicly visited Japan since Taipei and Tokyo severed diplomatic relations in 1972.
Mr Cho’s trip came as relations between Beijing and Tokyo remain at a low point after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in November that Japan’s armed forces could theoretically be deployed in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
China has since responded with countermeasures such as travel warnings and advisories, as well as export controls targeting Japan.
A Taiwanese Cabinet spokesperson did not respond to questions seeking further information on the visit.
China’s Foreign Ministry did not reply to a request for comment outside regular business hours, while the Japanese Foreign Ministry was not available for comment on a Sunday.
Visits by senior officials from Taiwan to Japan are sensitive, and such trips, if any, are usually conducted discreetly.
In 2022, then Vice-President Lai Ching-te travelled to Japan to mourn the death of former prime minister Shinzo Abe “in his personal capacity”, making him the highest-ranking official from Taiwan to visit the country in more than five decades.
Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung reportedly also made a trip to Japan in July 2025, which triggered protests from Beijing.
Mr Cho’s visit to Japan did not result in an immediate response by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the Taiwan Strait.
No PLA aircraft were detected between 6am on March 7 and 6am on March 8, after a brief appearance of two aircraft in the previous 24-hour period, according to Taiwan’s Defence Ministry.
There has been a mysterious slowdown in PLA activity since late February. BLOOMBERG
