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14 Jan, 12:53

Russia’s top diplomat explains why Taiwan listed as unfriendly country by Moscow

According to the Russian foreign minister, "Our Chinese friends understand this situation perfectly well"

MOSCOW, January 14. /TASS/. Taiwan was put on Russia’s list of unfriendly countries in 2022 because of its sanctions against Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a news conference on the results of Russian diplomacy in 2024.

"Taiwan has imposed sanctions on us, that’s the criteria. We consider governments that have joined [anti-Russian] sanctions as unfriendly. There are no unfriendly countries or nations, in our view," Russia’s top diplomat noted. According to him, "Our Chinese friends understand this situation perfectly well."

In the spring of 2022, Taiwan joined economic sanctions against Russia. In April 2022, the island first imposed restrictions on 57 Russian hi-tech exports, including semiconductors, aerospace and computer technologies, as well as lasers, sensors, and other items. A month later, it imposed similar restrictions on Belarusian exports. In January 2023, Taiwan expanded its sanctions, blacklisting 52 items, and in January 2024, it added 45 products to the list. In response, the Russian government placed Taiwan on its list of unfriendly jurisdictions.