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Seated among the attendees in both cities was Lee Yi-yang, head of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan, the island’s de facto embassy in the country.
Nevertheless, a Taiwanese official has never attended these events before and, after the ceremony in Hiroshima on Wednesday, Lee said the island hoped to have a presence there every year.
Lee’s appearance is part of a bigger effort by Taiwan to strengthen its unofficial bonds with Tokyo and raise the island’s international profile. Observers said Beijing would take a dim view of the participation, but both it and Tokyo would be careful to not undermine improving relations.
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Hiroshima 80 years on: Japan keeps legacy of the first atomic bomb attack alive
Hiroshima 80 years on: Japan keeps legacy of the first atomic bomb attack alive
Lee’s attendance at the Hiroshima and Nagasaki events came two weeks after Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung made a rare visit to Japan.
