Taiwan is not involved in military assistance for Ukraine, as it is “too sensitive,” but would like to establish a representative office in the country, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said on Wednesday during a visit to Berlin.
Taiwan has offered strong moral support to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion two years ago, seeing parallels with the threat Taipei faces from China.
Taiwan has provided millions in US dollars of humanitarian aid for Ukrainian refugees and joined in Western-led sanctions on Russia.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
While senior Taiwanese officials have spoken directly with some city mayors, there has been no acknowledged direct contact between the two governments.
Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday during a visit to Berlin, Wu said that Taiwan’s goal was to win as many friends as possible.
“Ukraine, even while receiving Taiwan’s support and sensing hostility from China — since China collaborates with Russia, which continues its war against Ukraine — is very careful about its relationship with Taiwan,” he said. “There is a fear within Ukraine that angering China could lead to closer China-Russia collaboration, intensifying military pressure.”
Last year, China put forward a 12-point paper that set out general principles for ending the war, but did not get into specifics.
China did not attend a Swiss peace conference on the war earlier this year.
Wu said Taiwan is focusing on developing relationships with Ukraine through its neighbors and providing humanitarian aid.
“However, military assistance is still too sensitive, so I do not think we are working on security equipment with Ukraine just yet,” he said.
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) last week said it was up to the US to decide what to do with Taiwan’s decommissioned Hawk anti-aircraft missiles, when asked if they would be transferred to Ukraine.
In Europe, Taiwan only maintains formal diplomatic relations with the Vatican. It has de facto embassies in many European countries, including Russia, but not in Ukraine.
There is no Ukraine representative office in Taipei either.
“We are also doing our utmost to develop relations with Ukraine, but for now, we have not gone as far as establishing a representative office. Perhaps in the future — it is certainly Taiwan’s wish — but for now, I do not think we are there yet,” Wu said.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was questioned by prosecutors for allegedly orchestrating an attack on a taxi driver after he was allegedly driven on a longer than necessary route in a car he disliked. The questioning at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office was ongoing as of press time last night. Police have recommended charges of attempted murder. The legally embattled actor — known for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代) — is under a separate investigation for allegedly using fake medical documents to evade mandatory military service. According to local media reports, police said Wang earlier last year ordered a
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
President William Lai (賴清德) should protect Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), and stop supporting domestic strife and discord, former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) wrote on Facebook yesterday. US President Donald Trump and TSMC on Monday jointly announced that the company would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next few years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US. The TSMC plans have promoted concern in Taiwan that it would effectively lead to the chipmaking giant becoming Americanized. The Lai administration lacks tangible policies to address concerns that Taiwan might follow in Ukraine’s footsteps, Ma wrote. Instead, it seems to think it could
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
RSS