I. V. GORDEEVA National Research University "Higher School of Economics" Keywords: Japan, Taiwan, US position, China's reaction, Senkaku (Diaoyu) In the context of the growing US-China rivalry in the Asia-Pacific region, Taiwan's importance is significantly increasing. Reuniting an island with the PRC, which has significant economic and military potential, would further strengthen the power of a rising China, which the United States and its most important ally in the Asia - Pacific region, Japan, clearly do not want to allow. Tokyo's position as one of the main players in the Taiwan issue plays an important role in the current situation. With the return of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to power in Japan, the new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has taken a course to further strengthen the Japanese-American military alliance and take a tougher stance in relations with China in the territorial dispute over the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu). TAIWAN'S REUNIFICATION WITH CHINA DOES NOT SUIT TOKYO In general, Japan continues to exercise caution and circumspection in Taiwan affairs, adhering to the positions set out in the Joint Japan-China Statement of 1972 and other joint documents with Beijing.* However, the development of events in the Asia-Pacific region encourages Tokyo to make important adjustments to its policy in the Taiwan direction, increasingly solidifying with Washington in ensuring Taiwan's security and preventing the issue from being resolved by force. As noted in a study by Stanford University researcher J. Chen (USA), " in recent years, Japan has significantly increased its support for Taiwan in the political and security spheres." He identifies the following three main reasons for this: American pressure on Tokyo to provide more support for the United States ' actions in the Asia-Pacific region, including in the situation with Taiwan; growing concern in Japan itself about the growing power of China; increasing sympathy for Taipei in Japanese society in the conte ... Read more