TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) received a handwritten letter from Japan’s new Liberal Democratic Party leader Takaichi Sanae, a delegation of Japanese lawmakers attending Taiwan’s National Day celebrations said Friday.

Officials from the Japan-ROC Diet Members’ Consultative Council said at a news conference in Taipei that they had handed the letter to Lai during a luncheon Friday. The multi-party group had sent 28 members of the Diet to Taiwan for the celebrations.

Council official Sasaki Hajime told reporters that during the luncheon, both sides emphasized their determination to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, per the Liberty Times. Lai congratulated Takaichi on her election as head of the LDP and hoped for closer cooperation, according to Sasaki.

The chair of the consultative council, Furuya Keiji, was unable to attend the news conference as he had been recalled to Japan. However, he was present at the National Day events in the morning and listened to Lai’s speech.

The Diet members presented Lai with a list of donations for the victims of last month’s barrier lake overflow in Hualien and said their government would supply a device to measure water levels in the lake.

Also Friday, Reuters reported that since the LDP's junior coalition partner has quit it has put Takaichi's attempt to become Japan's first female prime minister in doubt. She needs to be confirmed by parliament to take on the role.