Taiwanese anxious over Trump’s handling of Ukraine war

Deutsche Welle :

The black bag is fastened over Wu Ping-yen’s head. From a row of around a dozen people, all with hands tied behind their backs, Wu and the faceless figures beside him slowly fall to the floor outside Russia’s de facto embassy in central Taipei, Taiwan’s capital.

Organizers said this protest in support of Ukraine, marking the third anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor, represents the killing of Ukrainians at the hands of Russia.

But Wu, a 34-year-old engineer living in Taipei, said he is also here to resist pressure from China, which views the self-ruled Taiwan as a breakaway province.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Wu’s support of Kyiv has taken on new urgency. Under President Donald Trump, the United States has been acting erratically ­ – Trump has accused Ukraine’s democratically elected leader of being a dictator, implied Ukraine was the one starting the conflict with Russia, and most recently, voted against a UN resolution condemning Russia’s invasion.

In Taipei, where US military backing is considered essential to fending off a potential Chinese attack, many are now asking if the government in Washington is still committed to the delicate balance of power in the Taiwan Strait.

Wu told DW that he wasn’t concerned about conflict with China in the short term but added that the US was now trying to determine if “Taiwan is worth helping.”

“That’s where Trump could be unpredictable, if he believes Taiwan isn’t resilient enough,” he said.
From the first days of Russia’s invasion, many in Taipei have seen Ukraine’s fate as a parallel to their own.