Japan is suggesting that Taiwan and Japan revive the Economic Partnership Committee (EPC) meeting. The move is seen as a positive response to Taiwan’s recent lifting of a ban on food imports from five Japanese regions affected by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
The last time the two sides held a meeting of the EPC was eight years ago.
The resumption of the meeting could also indicate Japan’s support for Taiwan’s bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
The CPTPP is a free trade pact with eleven member countries including Japan. Taiwan filed its application to join the pact in September 2021, a week after China did the same.
The chairman of the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association, Chiou-I-jen, says his Japanese counterpart Ohashi Mitsuo made the suggestion at the 45th Economic and Trade Conference between Taiwan and Japan that just ended Friday.