The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says it is following bilateral talks between China and Japan on the establishment of an emergency contact system. The system would help to prevent conflict on the sea and in the air around the disputed Diaoyutai Islands. The talks are the first of their kind in a number of years.
The Diaoyutai Islands in the East China Sea are known as the Senkakus in Japan. They are claimed by Taiwan, China, and Japan.
At a press conference on Thursday, foreign ministry spokesperson Anna Kao reiterated the government’s position that the islands are Taiwanese territory. Kao said that President Ma Ying-jeou’s East China Sea Peace Initiative represents the government’s efforts to secure stability in the seas surrounding the islands while continuing to assert Taiwan’s sovereignty over the area.