TAIWAN NSC: WHAT IS THE JDF DOING ON YONAGUNI?

C O N F I D E N T I A L TAIPEI 001169 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/27/2019 TAGS: MARR PREL JA TW SUBJECT: TAIWAN NSC: WHAT IS THE JDF DOING ON YONAGUNI? REF: TAIPEI 1167 Classified By: the Director for reasons 1.4(b/d) ¶1. (C) During a conversation on a separate issue (reftel, NOTAL) National Security Council Secretary General Su Chi asked the Director if the United States had more information about Tokyo's recent focus on the island of Yonaguni. Specifically, Su said, Taiwan was curious about the motivation behind then-Defense Minister Hamada Yasukaza's July visit to the island and his suggestion that the Japanese Defense Force (JDF) might establish a presence there. There was little military rationale behind such a deployment, Su suggested, unless Tokyo intended to monitor military activities on and off of Taiwan's east coast. Although Japan's sovereignty over the sparsely-populated Yonaguni was not in dispute, Su said, its location -- less than 110 kilometers from Taiwan's coast -- made any JDF activities there a sensitive subject on Taiwan. ¶2. (C) DIR noted that Tokyo did not necessarily brief the United States on all JDF activities and that, in any event, Hamada -- and the government to which he belonged -- had been replaced. He nevertheless agreed to convey Su's concerns and questions to appropriate USG offices. STANTON