TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Ukrainian MP Mykola Knyazhytskyy said on Monday (July 31) that his country’s lack of recognition of Taiwan is a mistake, and that the destinies of Ukraine and Taiwan are interconnected.
“I consider my main task in the parliament to achieve the official recognition of the creation of the Ukrainian-Taiwan parliamentary friendship group. The lack of such recognition is a mistake,” Knyazhytskyy — who is also a journalist — said in an interview with Global Voices.
Knyazhytskyy last visited Taiwan in November 2022 in his role as co-chairman of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. During the visit he presented Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) with a pair of boxing gloves, a gift from the mayor of Kyiv.
“Ukrainians feel great sympathy for Taiwanese society, its democracy and protection of independent life from external aggression, and they keep their fingers crossed that communist China does not go to war against Taiwan,” Knyazhytskyy said.
The country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has been less direct in his support for Taiwan. Zelenskyy told Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in April that Ukraine’s position on the "one-China policy" is “unwavering.”
During the phone call Zelenskyy also thanked Xi for China's “support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” and the humanitarian aid it has provided. Taiwan has also provided aid to Ukraine, though it has not received thanks from top Ukrainian leadership as China has.
Despite that, Joseph Wu recently said that Taiwan’s support for Ukraine is “unconditional. The support coming from the Taiwanese people is genuine and passionate,” Wu said in an interview with The Telegraph, also on Monday.
Knyazhytskyy said that he believes Ukrainian people’s support for Taiwan will be able to change their government’s position on relations with Taiwan. “Ukrainians know more and more about Beijing's aggressive plans, and are supporting Taiwanese society,” he said.
“Values and ideas are critical. Now the world is fighting between democracy and authoritarianism … our destinies are interconnected, our countries, our societies must hold together,” Knyazhytskyy said.
