Source: Republic of China Taiwan
MOFA response to joint statement following Japan-EU summit stressing importance of peace and stability across Taiwan Strait
July 24, 2025
On July 23, Prime Minister of Japan Shigeru Ishiba, President of the European Council António Costa, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen met in Tokyo for the 30th Japan-European Union Summit. In a joint statement released following the meeting, the two sides underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as indispensable to security and prosperity in the international community and called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues. They also reiterated their opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung welcomes the statement, which marked the fourth consecutive summit since the 27th Japan-EU Summit in May 2021 during which the two sides had issued a joint statement that highlighted the significance of cross-strait peace and stability. Minister Lin also expresses appreciation to Japan for continuously voicing concern over Taiwan Strait issues during international gatherings with other like-minded countries, including the US-Japan leaders’ summit in February, the meeting between Prime Minister Ishiba and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in April, and Japan’s summit meetings with Latvia and Guatemala in May and with Finland in June. The concerns repeatedly expressed in these meetings demonstrated once again that ensuring cross-strait peace and stability has become a matter of international consensus and interest.
At a time when the expansion of authoritarianism poses a threat to regional peace and stability and challenges the rules-based global democratic order, Taiwan, as an important nation in the Indo-Pacific region and a responsible member of the international community, will uphold the ideals of integrated diplomacy. It will continue to strengthen cooperation with Japan, the European Union, and other like-minded partners so as to defend shared democratic values and jointly advance freedom, openness, peace, and prosperity throughout the Indo-Pacific region and around the globe.