Source: Republic of China Taiwan
September 29, 2025No. 375Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung attended a ceremony in Warsaw, Poland, on September 28 to witness the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Rebuilding Childhoods: Integrated Support for Vulnerable Children in Kyiv. Signed by Representative to Poland Jeff Liu and Deputy Director of the Kyiv City Center for Social Services for Families, Children and Youth Tetiana Badylevych, the MOU demonstrates Taiwan’s compassion in helping Ukrainians rebuild their lives through cooperation with international partners.In his remarks at the event, Minister Lin said that the initiative had come about following President Lai Ching-te’s inauguration last year and as a result of the president’s concern for the many Ukrainian children who had become unaccompanied or separated as a result of the brutal war. He added that this collaboration among the Taipei Representative Office in Poland, the Kyiv City Center for Social Services for Families, Children and Youth, the Italian nongovernmental organization WeWorld, and the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families (TFCF) had been facilitated by the tireless efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).Minister Lin emphasized that Taiwan and Ukraine shared a mutual belief in the values of freedom and democracy, which served as a bridge for maintaining friendship and deepening cooperation between the two countries. He said that he hoped the project would help Ukrainian children move toward a brighter, better, and more hopeful future.Speaking on behalf of the Kyiv city government, Deputy Director Badylevych said that despite the destructive war, every child deserved a happy childhood. She extended special thanks to Minister Lin, Representative Liu, WeWorld, and the TFCF for their willingness to help children and families in Kyiv.Members of the Ukrainian parliament Mykola Kniazhytskyi, who also serves as a cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, and Andrii Lopushanskyi also attended and witnessed the signing ceremony. In addition, such media outlets as Polish public broadcaster TVP and newspaper Rzeczpospolita, Ukraine-based Espreso TV, and Taiwan-based Central News Agency were present to cover the event.The project will provide a diverse range of educational courses to vulnerable children in Kyiv, helping recover the mental health of those traumatized by conflict. It will also supply IT equipment to reduce the digital divide among children. In addition to these efforts, the initiative will assist the Kyiv City Center for Social Services for Families, Children and Youth in enhancing basic infrastructure and building the capacity of staff so as to ensure the sustainable development of children’s welfare and care in the city.Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, Taiwan has provided Ukraine with over US$150 million in humanitarian assistance. This has covered the rebuilding of key water and power infrastructure, as well as schools and hospitals. It has also funded the provision of smart technologies designed to help Ukraine expedite postwar urban recovery, including the establishment of a 5G smart city pilot zone, collaboration on smart health care, and the application of smart technologies in the training of human resources. Taiwan has also participated in international cooperation initiated by Lithuania to conduct humanitarian mine clearance.MOFA will continue to work hand in hand with international partners to provide the support most needed in Ukraine. It will also strengthen cooperation with Ukraine in all spheres so as to advance friendly ties between the people of both countries and implement President Lai’s values-based diplomacy. (E)