On Tuesday last week, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa, undaunted by the threat of artillery shells, showed their solidarity against Russian aggression by traveling to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, which was coming under siege by Russian troops.
At the same time, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius Landsbergis also arrived in Kyiv to meet Ukrainian Minister of Defense Dmytro Kuleba and express his support.
From Taiwan’s point of view, the one thing that these four EU countries have in common is that they have all donated COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan.
Like Ukraine, these four former communist countries have experienced invasion and annexation by powerful neighboring countries. They came to Taiwan’s aid in the third quarter of last year when its need for vaccines peaked, but it was difficult to obtain them.
Poland donated 400,000 vaccine doses, making it the third-largest donor country after the US and Japan, while Lithuania provided two batches of vaccines totaling nearly 260,000 doses. With 160,000 doses from Slovakia and 30,000 doses from the Czech Republic, the four countries between them gave Taiwan nearly 850,000 doses.
Most of the 3 million refugees who have fled Ukraine have gone to Poland, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia or the Czech Republic. Of these, the largest number — about 60 percent — are in Poland.
The Czech Republic and Slovakia have each received more than 100,000 refugees, while Lithuania, which does not border Ukraine, has accepted 14,000.
Once again, the four central and eastern European countries have placed themselves at the forefront by providing a safe haven for displaced Ukrainians.
Amid the largest humanitarian crisis since World War II, Taiwan should not be aloof.
The government set up a special account for Ukraine relief, which donated NT$100 million (US$3.5 million) through Poland after receiving an overwhelming response from all sectors of society. Last week, it made further donations totaling NT$320 million to Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Lithuania.
With the addition of medicines and other medical supplies sent to Poland and Slovakia, Taiwan is standing alongside the four countries by sharing the heavy burden brought by the sudden influx of refugees.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) on Wednesday last week said that monetary donations are handled through direct talks with countries that are taking in refugees.
If they are willing to receive donations, the money is transferred to government agencies, and if they prefer to receive them through non-governmental organizations, the funds are transferred to bodies specified by the government concerned, Wu said.
Ties with those governments would become closer in the process, he said.
For example, for relief supplies that are transported to Warsaw, the Taipei Representative Office in Poland is responsible for contacting the Polish side, and Taiwan’s donations are being handed over to Poland’s highly professional and experienced Government Strategic Reserves Agency for distribution, he said.
A proverb in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) says that a gift of a mouthful of rice should be repaid with a whole bag.
The ongoing “cycle of kindness” between Taiwan and Europe is bolstering substantial ties between Taiwan and these European partners with which it shares common values.
Chen Yung-chang is a company manager.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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