Delegations from Aomori Prefecture and Mutsu City, Japan, visited Taiwan from October 18th to 21st. On the 20th, they also visited Kaohsiung to officially sign a tripartite friendly exchange agreement, becoming the 44th and 45th friendly cities of Kaohsiung. Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, Aomori Prefecture Governor Soichiro Miyashita, and Mutsu City Mayor Tomoya Yamamoto attended the signing ceremony in person. Chief Masafumi Oku of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association, Kaohsiung Office, was also present to witness this historic moment, marking the official beginning of a new chapter in the long-standing tripartite exchange. Mayor Chen noted that the city’s friendship with Aomori Prefecture and Mutsu City began with the establishment of sister junior schools over three decades ago, highlighting that education was the sector that first brought the three parties together. Following the signing of an MOU on collaboration at the end of last year, Kaohsiung has further expanded exchanges with Aomori and Mutsu to a broader range of fields. Mayor Chen expressed his gratitude to the Aomori Prefecture Governor and the Mutsu City Mayor for their strong support, which ultimately made the friendly-city partnership possible under close tripartite interactions. He pledged to promote tripartite collaboration in education, agriculture, fisheries, tourism, and culture, continuing to facilitate diverse Taiwan–Japan cooperation.
Since establishing their sister-school relationship in 1993, Kaohsiung Municipal Yangming Junior High School in Kaohsiung and Kawauchi Junior High School in Mutsu City have maintained steady educational exchanges over the years. In his remarks, Mayor Chen praised the deeply rooted friendship among Kaohsiung, Aomori Prefecture, and Mutsu City. He recalled that, following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Promoting International Exchanges last December, the three parties have engaged in frequent reciprocal visits and close interactions across the industrial, governmental, and academic sectors. These efforts have yielded fruitful outcomes in educational collaboration, promotion of local specialties, and reciprocal visits for cultural festivals. Recognizing that the three parties each have their own unique strengths in agriculture, fisheries, tourism, and education, Mayor Chen conveyed his hope that the establishment of the friendly-city partnership would further facilitate youth and cultural exchanges, allowing local residents to experience the long-standing Taiwan–Japan friendship, which is evident in areas ranging from education to festival activities.
“Aomori Prefecture has been cultivating apples for 150 years, and Taiwan has always been our largest export market. We look forward to continuing to promote high-quality Aomori produce to Taiwan,” stated Governor Soichiro Miyashita. The governor emphasized that, as Aomori Prefecture and Kaohsiung are highly complementary in both industry and tourism, he expected to see more diverse exchanges and collaboration not only in agriculture and fisheries but also in green energy, semiconductors, and other high-tech industries. Mayor Tomoya Yamamoto also stated that the tripartite exchanges have come a long way from their roots in education to yielding results in both culture and tourism. He expressed his expectation that the friendly-city partnership would elevate the relationship from “friends” to “confidants,” as the three parties are now closer than ever.
After the signing ceremony, Mayor Chen, Governor Miyashita, and Mayor Yamamoto took on the challenge of making creative salads using local ingredients, including agricultural and fishery products such as Kaohsiung’s Dashu pineapples and Cieding mullet roes, Aomori apples, and Mutsu salmon and scallops, to showcase the delicious fusion of flavors from the three regions. Chief Masafumi Oku served as the judge for the competition. Delighted to sample the dishes, he commented, “I am in for a treat!” and that the wonderful combination of ingredients symbolized the closely intertwined friendship among the three parties. Filled with laughter and joy, the event brought the atmosphere of the signing ceremony to a lively peak.
According to Director General Chang Yen-ching of the Department of Administrative and International Affairs of Kaohsiung City Government, the close ties among Kaohsiung, Aomori Prefecture, and Mutsu City have grown from education into multiple other sectors. In April, Mutsu City assigned a staff member, Mr. Shin Kobayashi, to be stationed at the Kaohsiung City Government, marking the first time a Japanese local government official has been posted in Kaohsiung. This measure has not only further institutionalized regular city-to-city exchanges but also enhanced the efficiency of tripartite communication. For example, it facilitated the establishment of sister-school partnerships among multiple kindergartens and between Kaohsiung Municipal Fu-Cheng Senior High School and Aomori Prefectural Tanabu High School. Aomori University has even planned a visit to Kaohsiung at the end of this year for baseball exchanges, aiming to further strengthen youth interactions. Earlier this August, Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lo Ta-sheng led a delegation on a reciprocal visit to Aomori Prefecture and Mutsu City, where they attended the century-old Tanabu Festival. Local residents warmly welcomed the delegation with hand-made lanterns, demonstrating that city diplomacy has reached into citizens’ everyday lives. With the friendly-city partnership now established, it is expected to inject new energy into Taiwan–Japan friendship.