New Taiwan-Japan ferry service debuts on ship that has war evacuation role

KEELUNG, Taiwan – A new ferry service linking Taiwan and Japan began operations on Thursday, offering both tourism opportunities and potential strategic utility. The Yaima Maru will shuttle passengers between Taiwan's northern port city of Keelung and Japan's Ishigaki Island once a week on an overnight journey.

The vessel is also listed by the Japanese government as part of a fleet that could evacuate residents from southern Japanese islands in the event of a regional crisis.

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has increased military pressure on Taipei over the past five years, conducting exercises near Japanese waters.

“This regular route is not merely transportation infrastructure,” Ishigaki Mayor Yoshitaka Nakayama said at Keelung port. “It serves as a new bridge that supports tourism, logistics, economic activity, cultural exchange, and education.”

The U.S. maintains a major military base in Okinawa, and Japan has been strengthening its defenses in the Ryukyu islands, including on Yonaguni, the closest Japanese island to Taiwan.

Tatsuya Ohama, president of Shosen Yaima, which operates the ferry service, said regional tensions are a matter for governments, adding, “As a private ferry operator, our first step is to get the service up and running.”

Japan ruled Taiwan from 1895 to 1945, and the two maintain close economic and trade ties despite the absence of formal diplomatic relations. Recent Japanese support for Taiwan has angered Beijing, which views such actions as provocative.

In November, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could prompt a military response from Tokyo, further straining ties. Taiwan continues to reject China’s sovereignty claims.

-Reporting by Yi-Chin Lee and Ann Wang; Additional reporting by Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by John Mair/Reuters