Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) on Monday pledged to donate US$500,000 to rebuild the Ukrainian town of Bucha after it was devastated by Russian troops.
Wu made the pledge during a video call with Bucha Mayor Anatoliy Fedoruk. He expressed concern for Ukrainians and said Taiwanese support Ukraine in its defense against an invasion launched by an authoritarian regime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Wu made similar calls with the primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine on June 10, the mayor of Kharkiv on May 31 and the mayor of Kyiv on April 22, pledging to donate US$13.2 million in total to help Ukraine rebuild.
Wu on Monday wrote on Twitter that he had an “emotional call” with the mayor of Bucha, where “some of the worst war crimes committed by Russia against the innocent” happened, referring to the reported massacre of hundreds of civilians by invading Russian forces.
“Taiwan will continue to stand with Ukraine in its fight for sovereignty, freedom & democracy,” Wu wrote.
More than 400 bodies have been found since April 12, following the withdrawal of Russian forces from the town after a month of occupation, Fedoruk has said.
Wu on Monday reiterated that Taiwan condemns in the strongest terms the “merciless massacre of civilians,” while joining calls from the international community for an immediate investigation into the matter.
The government has shipped 582 tonnes of humanitarian aid donated by Taiwanese to Ukrainians displaced by Russia’s attack and donated more than US$40 million to help Ukrainian refugees, medical institutions and churches affected by the invasion, Wu said.
Wu told Fedoruk that Taiwan has long faced Chinese military coercion and understood “perfectly” how Ukraine felt.
Fedoruk expressed gratitude for the government’s support and assistance.
He said Ukrainians would never forgive the “brutal and barbarous” acts conducted by Russia within Ukraine and in Bucha.
Fedoruk said that Ukraine’s government and its people would always remember the staunch support of Taiwan and would make good use of every penny of the money donated by the nation.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
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