TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — In response to severe power shortages in Ukraine caused by constant Russian attacks on the civilian power grid, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Wednesday (Dec. 7) announced that it is donating NT$30 million (US$1 million) for Kyiv to acquire power generating equipment.

In a press release, MOFA announced that Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Vitali Klitschko, mayor of Kyiv, and Grygorii Malenko, executive director of the charitable fund Darnychany, to provide financial assistance to enable the city to buy power generation equipment. The ministry's donation of NT$30 million will be used to purchase equipment such as diesel and gasoline generators "to help the more than three million Kyiv residents suffering from electricity shortages survive the severe winter."

The ministry said it has been 10 months since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and Ukrainians are "still resisting bravely." Faced with numerous battlefield defeats over the past several months, Russian President Vladimir Putin has resorted to launching missile and drone attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, resulting in a number of cities facing large-scale power outages.

MOFA noted that the average winter temperature in Ukraine's capital city is zero degrees Celsius. In an attempt to cope with the situation, Kyiv has been forced to launch rolling blackouts and establish 1,000 heated shelters for its residents.

As winter sets in, snow has begun to fall on Kyiv, adding to the urgency of the city's power generation issues. The ministry stated that in order to help Kyiv deal with its power shortage challenges, Taiwan's government is providing emergency funds for the acquisition of power generation equipment.

In addition, Taiwan will donate humanitarian relief supplies, scarves, gloves, winter clothing, blankets, and rations to "convey the warmth of the people and government of Taiwan to the Ukrainian people and help them through the harsh winter."

The ministry emphasized that Taiwan and Ukraine "share the strong will and firm desire to staunchly defend their national sovereignty." It added that both Taiwan and Ukraine are on the front lines "guarding against authoritarian expansionism."

MOFA pledged that Taiwan is ready to provide assistance to its partners when in need and will "promptly deliver the warmth and caring of the Taiwan people and government to Ukraine." It closed by saying Taiwan "stands with the Ukrainian people in their time of greatest need."