Taiwan expands sanctions against Russia and Belarus

On December 26, the Economy Ministry of Taiwan announced an expansion of the list of goods prohibited from export to Russia and Belarus.

This measure has been taken in response to the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the aim of preventing these goods from being used for military purposes, the Taiwanese Ministry of Economy states this on its website.

 “In order to implement international cooperation and prevent the export of our high-tech goods for military purposes,” the ministry expanded the list of sanctioned goods against Russia and Belarus.

The list includes equipment for the production of semiconductors, in which Taiwan is a world leader, as well as certain chemicals and medicines.

The new sanctions are in line with similar moves by the European Union, the United States, and other countries based on the discovery of Western-made high-tech components in Russian equipment on the battlefield in Ukraine, the Taiwanese ministry said in a statement.

Taiwan condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and joined other Western sanctions against it. This step is symbolic in practice, as there is only minimal direct trade between the island and Russia.

The situation in Ukraine has aroused sympathy among the people of Taiwan because of the parallels with what could happen if China decides to use force against an unrecognized island nation to bring it back under its de facto control.