Diplomats from 11 Indo-Pacific countries stationed in Taiwan took part in a specially organized New Year’s Eve function staged by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, underscoring the commitment of the government to strengthening bonds with the country’s like-minded partners.

Two ROC (Taiwan) air force C-130s delivered 10 metric tons of relief supplies to the Philippines Dec. 25-26 as part of government efforts to assist the Southeast Asian country bounce back from Typhoon Rai, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

In response to the threat posed by the Omicron variant, after discussions with relevant agencies and assessments, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced on December 27 that it will maintain the Level 2 epidemic alert, effective from December 28 to January 10. Related regulations remain unchanged and are listed below.

Taiwan donated US$500,000 to the Philippines Dec. 22 in support of relief and reconstruction efforts following Typhoon Rai, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The government and people of Taiwan convey their condolences to those affected by Typhoon Rai, which struck the central and southern regions of the Philippines Dec. 16, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Taiwan, the U.S., Japan and newly designated full partner Australia staged the annual Global Cooperation and Training Framework Joint Committee Meeting Dec. 17 in Taipei City, reviewing the results of 2021 workshops and planning for the year ahead.

Taiwan is on democracy’s first line of defense against China’s expanding authoritarianism, according to Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu.

A forum enhancing public-private partnership while promoting exchanges between locally-based nongovernmental organizations and their international counterparts was staged Dec. 14 in Taipei City, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

François de Rugy, former President of the French National Assembly and current Chairman of the National Assembly’s France-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group, is leading a six-member cross-party delegation to Taiwan from December 15 to 19 at the invitation of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

The 11th annual Taiwan-US-Japan Trilateral Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue was held in Taipei on December 14, focusing on the theme of “Mapping the Democratic Agenda for the Next Generation.” The dialogue was coorganized by the Prospect Foundation, the Center for a New American Security, and the Japan Institute of International Affairs—think tanks from each of the three countries—and commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan).