TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — To show support for Japan following China’s ban on imports of its seafood, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on Thursday posted a photo of himself eating sushi.

On Wednesday, China resuspended imports of Japanese seafood amid a diplomatic spat over Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae’s recent remarks on Taiwan. Lai responded by writing on social media, “Today's lunch is sushi and miso soup,” and noted that his meal featured yellowtail from Kagoshima and scallops from Hokkaido, per CNA.

Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Thursday that China has repeatedly used “economic and military coercion to bully other countries," per CNA. He added that weaponizing trade in this manner is “uncivilized and undemocratic” and that Taiwan must support Japan at this critical moment.

Lai shared photos of his Japanese lunch and Mandarin caption on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and X, with the latter written primarily in Japanese. These posts gained a combined 50,000 likes within two hours.