Bi-khim Hsiao is the Taiwan government’s representative to the United States.
Many scholars and world leaders have drawn comparisons between the situation in Eastern Europe and the situation across the Taiwan Strait. Although there are distinct historical and geopolitical differences, one commonality stands out: Both Ukraine and Taiwan have long endured the perils of living next to a belligerent, authoritarian neighbor. There exists, therefore, a special degree of empathy and sympathy among the Taiwanese people for what Ukrainians are suffering. This is why Taiwan joined the United States and other partners in announcing sanctions toward Russia and why the Taiwanese people immediately answered the call to respond to the need for humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.
On Feb. 28, the Taiwan government sent a planeload of medical supplies and financial aid via Poland and thereafter began accepting private donations of other needed goods. The Taiwan government has set up a special account through which more than 110,000 Taiwanese citizens have donated to help Ukrainian refugees in Eastern Europe. So far $30 million has been raised, part of which has already been disbursed to refugee centers across Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania and the Czech Republic. More help is on the way.
The war in Ukraine has made it clear to the world how important it is for democracies to stand shoulder to shoulder against authoritarian aggression. As more and more countries are realizing, appeasement is not the path to peace. Taiwan will continue its efforts with the United States and like-minded democracies everywhere to support Ukraine, so that freedom and democracy prevail.
For decades, Taiwan has stood on the front line of democracy’s struggle against authoritarianism, fighting to maintain our hard-earned freedoms. We have learned that only cooperation among like-minded partners can guarantee the endurance of our shared values for future generations. To that end, we thank the Biden administration for sending a delegation of senior security experts this month to emphasize the rock-solid U.S. commitment to Taiwan amid the Ukraine crisis. We appreciate that support for Taiwan in Washington is bipartisan and consistent. And the administration’s efforts to reach out to other Indo-Pacific stakeholders to underscore the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, opposing the use of force to change the status quo, are especially important.
The determination and resilience that the Ukrainian people have shown in the wake of Russia’s invasion have inspired Taiwan, reinforcing our commitment to defend our freedom. In recent years, we have undertaken a complete review of our self-defense capabilities, restructuring our training procedures, reserve forces and defense budgets to better prioritize asymmetric capabilities and to deter the People’s Republic of China from making the wrong calculation, as Russia did. Recent polls and surveys demonstrate increasing support among Taiwanese people for bolstering our self-defense. The will to defend our homeland and democratic way of life is also stronger than ever.
Whatever claims and threats the Chinese authorities make over Taiwan, the ironclad reality is that Taiwan has never been, at any point in time, a part of the PRC. The future of Taiwan must be determined peacefully and democratically. For all of the PRC’s military might, any invasion attempt will fail to break the solidarity and resiliency of the Taiwanese people.
Democracy in Ukraine and Taiwan will prevail, and the arc of history will bend toward liberty in the global struggle against authoritarianism.