Taiwan is pushing to tie itself closer to Japan on chips, drones, and defense, framing China as the shared threat — good news for both countries' security industries, bad news for Beijing.

• President Lai Ching-te met a visiting delegation from Japan's Ishin party led by former foreign minister Seiji Maehara.
• Lai called for deeper work on strategic industries, naming semiconductors and drones.
• He pointed to China's military drills, gray-zone pressure, and cross-border crackdowns as attempts to change the status quo by force.
• Maehara said Washington now treats arms sales to Taiwan as key to deterrence in Asia, and warned China could take the lead in AI if the US eases off.
• The Japanese group also wants to copy Taiwan's model of bringing private money and business into public infrastructure.

Outlook: Expect more Taiwan-Japan tie-ups in chips and defense tech, and more pushback from Beijing over each one.