Lee Yi-yang, head of Taiwan’s Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Tokyo, declined to attend Nagasaki’s 81st anniversary memorial of the U.S. atomic bombing, citing objections to seating arrangements. Lee stated in a social media post that the designated seats for Taiwanese officials were not positioned among those reserved for diplomatic missions, which he characterized as Nagasaki deliberately denying Taiwan’s status as a sovereign nation.
Lee and two deputies abstained from the ceremony held at the Peace Park, with the office sending a lower-ranking official from Fukuoka instead. In a statement, Lee’s representatives accused Nagasaki of functioning as a proxy for China’s position that Taiwan lacks statehood and sovereignty. Nagasaki officials countered that the seating arrangement placed Taiwanese representatives near other envoys without clear distinction from nondiplomatic guests.
The boycott comes against the backdrop of Japan’s diplomatic structure, which recognizes the People’s Republic of China rather than Taiwan following the normalization of ties in 1972. Despite this official position, Japan and Taiwan maintain substantial economic and trade relationships through nongovernmental channels. The memorial drew representatives from 98 countries and three international organizations including the United Nations, European Union, and International Committee of the Red Cross.
Lee, who assumed his position in September 2024, noted he attended the Hiroshima atomic bombing memorial earlier in August without objection to his seating. He stated he received similar seat assignments in Nagasaki the previous year but chose not to protest then to preserve friendly relations. Nagasaki had revised its invitation policies following a 2024 boycott by then-U.S. Ambassador Rahm Emanuel and counterparts from five other Group of Seven nations over Israel’s non-invitation, adopting criteria that Taiwan does not formally meet as a guest.
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