A delegation of four senior military officers from Taiwan has taken part in a multilateral security forum in Japan. The Pacific Amphibious Leaders Symposium (PALS) was held jointly by the United States and Japan, and took place in Tokyo from Monday to Thursday.
Nearly 70 delegates from 18 countries attended the event. Four senior officers from Taiwan, led by Rear Admiral Chang Shih-hsing, took part as observers. This is the first group from Taiwan to attend the forum since 2019.
The forum aims to safeguard peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and improve amphibious operational capabilities between friendly countries. This year the event was held in Japan for the first time in its eight-year history. Some see it as a response to an increase in China’s naval activity.
The delegates were invited to tour the Yokosuka naval base, which is the largest US naval installation outside of America. There they saw demonstrations of military hardware, including amphibious landing vehicles, hovercraft and medium-range multi-purpose missiles.
On display were both US-made hardware and weapons produced by Japan. From Japan — the Type 12 surface-to-ship missile system, and from the US — the V-22 Osprey vertical take off and landing aircraft, CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopter and M142 HIMARS rocket platform.
At the closing ceremony on Thursday night, Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force General Yoshihide Yoshida said that Japan shares maritime borders with China, Russia and North Korea. Authoritarian regimes in power in these countries are becoming increasingly assertive. Yoshida says that’s why the country aims to strengthen its defensive capabilities, which will in turn help the US and Japan to work together to deter and respond to aggression.