Taiwan extends sanctions against Russia and Belarus
Taiwan's economy ministry said on Tuesday it had expanded a list of sanctioned goods for Russia and its ally Belarus in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine to prevent Taiwanese high-tech goods from being used for military purposes.
This was reported by Reuters, Ukrinform reported.
Taiwan's economy ministry said the move was made "in order to fulfil international cooperation and prevent the export of our high-tech goods for military purposes".
The list includes equipment for making semiconductors, the production of which Taiwan is a world leader in, as well as certain chemicals and medicines.
The new sanctions are consistent with those already announced by the European Union, the United States and other countries, the ministry said in a statement.
The EU, the United States and others have recently collected weapon debris from Ukrainian battlefields and come up with a "common high priority list" of electronic and mechanical parts and equipment that are widely used in commercial applications and can be used to make weapons.
Taiwan has condemned Russia's aggression against Ukraine and joined Western sanctions, although this step is largely symbolic, as there is only minimal direct trade between the island and Russia.
Ukraine's plight has won broad public sympathy in Taiwan due to what many people view as the parallels between what it happening in the European country and what could happen if China ever uses force to bring the island it claims as its own territory under Chinese control.
As reported, Taiwan, together with the Alliance of Polish Metropolitan Cities, created a fund to help Ukrainian refugees in Poland and donated $1 million to it.