Japan and other regional partners should work together to counter Chinese military coercion and build a “non-red” supply chain, President William Lai (賴清德) said in an interview published by Nikkei Asia yesterday.

As Lai approaches one year in office, he granted his first foreign media interview this year to the Japan-based publication to discuss Taiwan’s relations with Japan, China and the US, as well as the semiconductor industry, and the international economic and trade landscape.

Amid US President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs and escalating Chinese military exercises around Taiwan, Lai said that “Japan is a powerful nation. I sincerely hope that Japan can take a leading role amid these changes in the international landscape.”