Taiwan has allies in the Pacific and Lithuania is its newest unofficial ally

China wants to swallow Taiwan. This is a self-ruled democracy, hungry for companionship. Its efforts go beyond official channels. It has diplomatic ties with Guatemala and allies in the Pacific. Lithuania is its newest unofficial ally and the government and local shoppers have embraced its imports. These range from lasers to bacon-flavored schnapps. “Taiwan is now receiving more international attention than ever before,” said President Tsai Ing-wen in on Taiwan’s national day of October 10. The country has fewer embassies than a decade ago. However, it now has more ties with a wider range of nations. Incidentally, this approach has been there since the 1980s and ’90s when diplomats and officials would go to play golf games in foreign capitals. The reason for its latest burst of diplomatic activity is probably a fallout of a sense of deepening insecurity. This probably stems from the attitude of China and new opportunities for connection. How Taiwan’s ‘Adorable’ and Ambitious Diplomacy Aims to Keep the Island Safe.

China, under the country’s top leader, Xi Jinping, has made Taiwan more of a priority. US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said recently that China is now operating on a “much faster timeline” to annex Taiwan. Neither of them mentioned any timeline. The latest foreign ministry budget of Taiwan included a sizable increase because it expects to host more than six meetings per day, every day of the year. Eswatini is one of Taiwan’s official allies. Its King Mswati III had come to Taipei last week. President Tsai Ing-wen hosted a lunch for Japanese officials and met with delegations from Canada and Washington. Two weeks ago, leaders of Taiwan feted German parliamentarians. Obviously, the country is working to a plan and trying to reach out to other countries for support.

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Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland will set up joint unit for peacekeeping operations

Poland has agreed to set up a joint military unit along with Ukraine and Lithuania to be based in the east of the country and it is understood from the Polish president's office that the new unit will be commanded from Lublin, in eastern Poland news.sky.com.
The proposed brigade will comprise soldiers of Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland who will be located close to their home countries. As per the defense ministry, the project is aimed at creating a unit for peacekeeping operations and could, in future, form the basis to build a NATO battle group.
The US has also come to help out Ukraine – it has pledged $53m in aid to Ukraine, including radar equipment to counter mortar attacks. This includes $46m to bolster Ukraine's security in its conflict with Russian-backed separatists, and another $7m in humanitarian aid.
Of course, this package does not include any type of lethal weaponry that some Republican politicians had wanted the US to provide.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has appealed to US Congress for lethal and non-lethal aid during his visit to Washington because, while blankets, and night-vision goggles are important, one cannot win the war with blankets. He has requested for more military aid beyond the basic equipment such as night-vision goggles which the US has already supplied.
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