Taipei, Dec. 14 (CNA) More than 100 Japanese expats and local government officials, including Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng and Foreign Minister Timothy Yang, gathered on Wednesday to celebrate the 78th birthday of Japan's Emperor Akihito. In a speech delivered at the event, Tadashi Imai, Japan's representative to Taiwan, noted the closeness of bilateral ties and thanked Taiwan for its generous support in the aftermath of the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami. "With great gratitude, Japan is now fully committed to post-disaster reconstruction," Imai addressed the audience. With the revitalization of Japan's economy and social infrastructure, Taiwanese businesses are urged to make more investments and tourists more trips to the country, he said. Describing Taiwan-Japan relations as "growing stably," Imai cited exchanges and cooperation in various fields over the past year, including an open skies agreement signed by both parties this November and the establishment of a master program on Japanese studies in August. Yang agreed with Imai that bilateral relations have always been friendly, recalling how Japan helped Taiwan with disaster relief operations after the 921 Earthquake in 1999 and Typhoon Morakot in 2009. "We hope that our relations can move to a higher level in the coming years," said Yang. (By Nancy Liu)
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