China protests to Japan over presence of Taiwan Vice President William Lai at Abe’s funeral

Beijing, Jul 12 (PTI) China on Tuesday lodged a “stern” diplomatic protest to Japan over the presence of Taiwan’s Vice-President William Lai at the funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

“I need to correct you first. Taiwan is part of China. There is no so-called “Taiwan Vice President,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the media here when asked about Lai’s attendance, widely regarded as the successor to the current Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. China regards Taiwan as part of its mainland and opposes official contact between the island and other nations, including Taiwanese officials making visits.

Wang said Taiwan officials are trying to seek political advantage out of Abe’s death. “After the sudden and unfortunate passing of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the Taiwan authorities have sought to engage in political manipulation and benefit politically by taking advantage of the incident,” he said.

“Their political calculations will not succeed,” he asserted. “The Chinese side has lodged stern representations to the Japanese side both in Beijing and Tokyo and has made our position absolutely clear,” Wang said. Abe, the longest-serving prime minister of Japan was gunned down at a campaign rally in the southern city of Nara, shocking the nation and the world.

Abe’s family has said it was a private funeral. No officials from Beijing attended the funeral, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported. On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a stop in Tokyo to offer condolences in person.

Lai – who is seen as a potential presidential candidate for the 2024 election – is the highest-ranking Taiwanese official to visit Japan in the past five decades since Tokyo switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1972, the Post report said.

Chinese official media also criticised Tsai for ordering the Taiwanese flag to fly at half-mast to honour Abe. On July 9, Chinese President Xi Jinping extended condolences to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida over the passing of Abe and praised his contribution to the betterment of China-Japan ties.

Xi said that he deeply regrets Abe’s sudden passing and stands ready to work with Kishida to continue to develop a China-Japan relationship of good neighbourliness, friendship and cooperation in accordance with the principles of the four China-Japan political documents.