Kyiv has received the first two of 20 planned high-capacity generators (300-800 kVA) as part of a memorandum between Kyiv and Taiwan on assistance in acquiring alternative power sources, the press service of the capital’s mayor said Monday.
“The first two generators have already been transferred to Kievteploenergo, they are used in city boiler houses. As part of the project, about 20 generators are expected to be transferred to power critical infrastructure facilities in the capital. We are very grateful to our partners for support of Kyiv and Ukraine,” Vitalii Klitschko said during the transfer of generators to the communal enterprise “Kyivteploenerho”.
Last December, Kiev and Taiwan signed a memorandum of understanding to help the Ukrainian capital purchase diesel power generators with the help of a donation from Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
An inter-factional deputy association (IFO) “In support of friendship, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation with Taiwan” will start working in the Verkhovna Rada, said Alexander Merezhko, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Policy and Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation (Servant of the People faction) .
“Together with our colleagues, we decided to create an IFI “In support of friendship and cooperation with Taiwan” (…) In fact, the IFI has already been created. All that remains is to announce its creation at the plenary meeting,” Merezhko told Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.
According to the head of the committee, he was one of the initiators of the creation of the IFO, which included 15 people’s deputies from the Servant of the People, Holos, and European Solidarity factions.
Merezhko noted that he personally was prompted to create an IFO by Taiwan’s actions – “serious sanctions against Russia” imposed after the start of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the assistance provided to our country.
“That is, Taiwan behaved like a true friend in a difficult time for us. Society in Taiwan also very actively supported Ukraine,” Merezhko stressed.
Speaking about the plans of IFIs, Merezhko emphasized that he considers the model of European countries, which have their own economic representations in Taipei, to be attractive.
“We need to develop economic, cultural, humanitarian and other ties with Taiwan. By the way, the European Parliament recommends that EU states develop ties with Taiwan. And this is right, because we have common values. For example, such as democracy and the rule of law,” explained people’s deputy.
In the statement on the creation of the IFO, handed over by Merezhko to the Interfax-Ukraine agency, the people’s deputies note the need to “develop relations with Taiwan to protect peace, within the framework of international law, the UN Charter, Ukraine’s international obligations and the one China policy.”
According to the document, the MPs included in it elected Merezhko as the head of the MFI.
Speaker of the House of Representatives of the US Congress Pelosi should land in Taiwan an hour earlier than the time previously published in various media (at 16:20 Kyiv time). Her delegation will consist of 40 people.
The visit of the Speaker of the House of Representatives may last until 5:00 pm Wednesday local time.
Earlier, a Boeing C-40C special flight carrying Nancy Pelosi arrived in Singapore on Sunday, according to Flightradar data.
Prior to this, the aircraft took off from the Hawaiian Islands, where it made an intermediate landing after flying from the continental United States.
Speaker of the House of Representatives of the US Congress Nancy Pelosi went on an official trip to Asia, during which she will visit Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, her press office said in an official statement. It is indicated that Pelosi led the American delegation, the purpose of which is to conduct negotiations on trade, security, climate change and the COVID-19 epidemic.
At the same time, the message does not mention the possibility of her visit to Taiwan, which she previously announced.
Tensions over a possible visit to Taiwan by Pelosi rose after Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a telephone conversation with US President Joe Biden on Thursday, said that the position of the Chinese leadership and the people of the country on the Taiwan issue is firm, and that “the United States must respect” the principle of one China.” He also warned Biden against “playing with fire” on Taiwan.
Previously, the YouTube channel “Club of Experts” called Pelosi’s possible visit to Taiwan a top event. For a more detailed analysis of upcoming events in Ukraine and the world, see the video review of the Expert Club channel at the link
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that the world must always support proactive measures to prevent violence.
He said this on Saturday at the 19th Asia Shangri-La Dialogue Security Summit, answering a question about what can be done to counter China’s campaign of economic and military coercion against Taiwan.
“I think that today’s example of Ukraine is an example for the whole world. The world must always support any action related to pre-emptive measures so that there is no war,” he said.
According to Zelensky, “there is no positive from the war in the world. No one gets a positive, except for some political leaders who daily increase their ambitions because of their political appetite.”
“The world should decide everything diplomatically. Support states that need it. Do not leave this or that state alone with another state, which may be stronger financially, territorially, in terms of weapons. If problems can be solved by diplomacy, they must be solved,” he said.
“But do not turn on after the war starts, when there are tens and hundreds of thousands of victims. The war does not benefit anyone except the ambitions of some people,” Zelensky stressed.
According to Olivia Enos, senior political analyst at the Center for Asian Studies, the Chinese delegation left the hall during Zelensky’s speech.
Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe on Friday at a meeting with Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin said that Beijing is ready for military action if anyone makes an attempt to separate Taiwan from China, reports the Chinese edition of Global Times, citing a representative of the defense departments of the People’s Republic of China Wu Qian.
“According to Wu Qian’s statement, Wei Fenghe said that if anyone dares to separate Taiwan from China, the Chinese military will not hesitate to fight and resolutely suppress any attempt at ‘Taiwan independence’ at any cost, and will firmly defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity.” , – writes the edition.
According to him, the Chinese defense minister also condemned the recent US decision to send arms to Taiwan again. He stated that this “caused serious damage to China-US relations, as well as peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe and Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin held a bilateral meeting on Friday in Singapore, where a security forum is being held. According to Chinese media company Caixin, Wei Fenghe noted that the meeting lasted about an hour and was “honest and successful.” The Pentagon said that the parties discussed issues of global and regional security, the topics of the DPRK, Russia and Ukraine, as well as Taiwan.
“The minister stressed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, rejection of a unilateral change in the status quo, and urged China to refrain from destabilizing actions against Taiwan,” the ministry said in a statement.
