Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan (TECO; , Japanese 台北駐日経済文化代表処 Taihoku Zainichi Keizai Bunka Daihyou Sho) represents the interests of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, functioning as a ''de facto'' embassy in the absence of diplomatic relations. It is operated by the Taiwan–Japan Relations Association (), a parastatal agency of the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

. Its Japanese counterpart is the

Japan–Taiwan Exchange Association The (), formerly known as Interchange Association, is an organization that represents the interests of Japan in Taiwan. In 2017, the current name was adopted. Its counterpart in Japan is the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative ...

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...

History

The Association of East Asian Relations (AEAR) was established in 1972 after the government of Japan severed its diplomatic relations with Taiwan, replacing the Republic of China's embassy in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, and its consulates-general in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

and

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

.The International Law of Recognition and the Status of the Republic of China
Hungdah Chiu in ''The United States and the Republic of China: Democratic Friends, Strategic Allies, and Economic Partners'', Steven W. Mosher, Transaction Publishers, 1992, page 24 In 1992, the offices in Japan adopted the current name. In 2017, AEAR was renamed Taiwan–Japan Relations Association. However, the situation in

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

was different. Okinawa had been occupied by the United States since the end of World War II until 1972, and its name under the occupation was

Ryukyu The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yonaguni ...

. In 1958, the ROC established Sino-Ryukyuan Cultural and Economic Association. After Okinawa's return to Japan in May 1972 and the severance of diplomatic relations in September, the Office in Okinawa remained with the same name. This office, under a different title, had existed simultaneously with the TECRO offices in Japan until 2006, when the office in Okinawa was merged into the Office in Tokyo. This curiosity may have arisen because the

Ryūkyū Kingdom The Ryukyu Kingdom, Middle Chinese: , , Classical Chinese: (), Historical English names: ''Lew Chew'', ''Lewchew'', ''Luchu'', and ''Loochoo'', Historical French name: ''Liou-tchou'', Historical Dutch name: ''Lioe-kioe'' was a kingdom in t ...

was a

tributary state A tributary state is a term for a pre-modern state in a particular type of subordinate relationship to a more powerful state which involved the sending of a regular token of submission, or tribute, to the superior power (the suzerain). This to ...

of China (the

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peop ...

and

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

Dynasties) before the 19th century, and consequently the ROC, as the successor government of the Qing, may for historical reasons have distinguished Okinawa from Japan. However, in 2006, Taiwan officially acknowledged that Okinawa is now part of Japan. It now has liaison offices in

and

and branches of the Tokyo Office in

Naha is the capital city of Okinawa Prefecture, the southernmost prefecture of Japan. As of 1 June 2019, the city has an estimated population of 317,405 and a population density of 7,939 persons per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). The total area i ...

and

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

.Taiwan opens new office in Sapporo
''

Taiwan Today ''Taiwan Journal'' () is an English-language weekly newspaper published by the Government Information Office of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The newspaper, with both print and online editions, is published every Friday, 51 issues per year (n ...

'', December 1, 2009

Representatives

AEAR Representatives

*Ma Shu-li, 1973–1985 * Mou Shung-nian, 1985 * Ma Chi-chuang, 1985–1990 * Chiang Hsiao-wu, 1990–1991 *

Hsu Shui-teh Hsu Shui-teh (; 1 August 1931 – 31 March 2021) was a Taiwanese politician. He was the President of the Examination Yuan from 1996 to 2002. He died of pneumonia on 31 March 2021, at the age of 89. Education Hsu earned his bachelor's and master ...

, 1991–1993

TECO Representatives

* Lin Chin-ching, 1993–1996 *

Chuang Ming-yao Chuang Ming-yao (; 16 November 1929 – 6 January 2002) was a Taiwanese admiral, diplomat, and politician. Chuang served as the Vice Minister of National Defense under Chen Li-an and was named commander of the Republic of China Navy in 1992 ...

, 1996–2000 * Lo Fu-chen, 2000–2004 *

Koh Se-kai Koh Se-kai (; born 1934 in Changhua County) is a Taiwanese historian, politician, and diplomat. He is an important leader of the Taiwan independence movement. In 2004, Koh was appointed to be the Republic of China’s top representative to Japan ...

, 2004–2008 * John Feng, 2008–2012 * Shen Ssu-tsun, 2012–2016 *

Frank Hsieh Frank Hsieh Chang-ting (; born May 18, 1946) is a Taiwanese politician and former defense attorney. A cofounder of the Democratic Progressive Party, he has served on the Taipei City Council, the Legislative Yuan, as the mayor of Kaohsiung Cit ...

, 2016–

References

External links

Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Japan

Taiwan–Japan Relations Association
{{Diplomatic missions in Japan