Amid Russia-Ukraine war, US delegation lands in Taiwan

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - A US delegation arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday for talks amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

The "high-level bipartisan delegation of former US security officials" was received by Joseph Wu, the foreign minister of the self-ruled island, in the capital Taipei.

"We thank the (Joe) Biden administration for its timely show of rock-solid support for Taiwan," said the ministry on Twitter.

The visit by former US security officials, led by retired chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen, came on the sixth day of the Russia-Ukraine war, with the latest reports indicating that Russian troops were heading toward the capital Kyiv.

Taiwan has condemned the Russian war on Ukraine and joined its Western allies to impose sanctions on Moscow to deter it from its military operation in the eastern European nation.

The war has been met with outrage from the international community, with the EU, UK, US, and Japan implementing a range of economic sanctions on Russia.

So far, at least 136 civilians, including 13 children, have been killed and 400 others, including 26 children, injured in Ukraine, according to UN figures.

Around 660,000 people have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, the UN refugee agency said on Tuesday.

As the world focuses on the Russia-Ukraine war, observers are also closely watching China's moves regarding Taiwan, which it sees as a breakaway province.

Taipei, however, has insisted on its independence since 1949 and maintains diplomatic relations with at least 14 countries.