Taipei, Feb. 9 (CNA) Japan is very much interested in exhibiting some of the collection of Taiwan's National Palace Museum (NPM), but it must enact a law first to make such an event possible, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said Tuesday.
The two countries have long discussed the possibility of exhibiting NPM artworks in Japan, but before an exhibition takes place, Taiwan hopes Japan will pass legislation that ensures the return of the precious objects to Taiwan, said Charles Chen, the secretary-general of the Association of East Asian Relations.
The association, which is part of the MOFA, is in charge of Japanese affairs.
Japan's representative to Taipei Tadashi Imai said Japan's parliament is likely to pass a law in the first half of this year so that Taiwan can begin preparations to send art objects from its Palace Museum to be shown in that country.
Negotiations have been tortuous because of Taiwan's political plight. China has long claimed ownership of the NPM's assets, which the Kuomintang (KMT) brought to Taiwan as it was losing the Chinese civil war to the communists in 1949.
According to NPM spokeswoman Chen Chang-hua, if China were to file an ownership claim against NPM objects that are being exhibited abroad, the exhibition would have to be suspended and the artworks could potentially be seized.
But the risk will not exist if legislation is passed by the host country guaranteeing that the exhibits will be safely returned to Taiwan.
Such legislation has been required before the NPM arranged any of its overseas exhibitions, Chen said, noting that France, Germany, and the United States all passed bills to protect NPM exhibits before they were displayed in those countries.