Unlike China, Taiwan donates masks to Canada that actually work

Canada has just been donated 500,000 surgical masks from the Republic of China (Taiwan). 400,000 of these masks were sent to Canada’s federal government, 50,000 to Ontario, and 25,00 each for British Columbia and Alberta.

Canada’s Trade Officer in Taipei warmly accepted the donation stating that “We are deeply grateful for Taiwan’s donation of surgical masks to Canada… Taiwan’s generous donation will help save lives.”

Unlike with the shipment Canada purchased from communist mainland China these masks are quality, and we didn’t have to pay for the privilege of shipping them back upon arrival.

Unlike Taiwan’s shipment, the Chinese shipment of surgical and N95 masks, much of which was needed for doctors and nurses. It is telling that the vital equipment Canada paid for, and not donated to us, was contaminated and could not be used.

It feels less like a mistake on behalf of the Chinese government and yet just another attempt to get one over on a country that China does not respect. If it was immediately apparent in Canada that the medical supplies China sent were trash, it probably was as visible to the country that poorly produced it.

The Chinese government did agree to replace the million defective masks and swabs that they sent us back on April 24, but that doesn’t help the fact that a significant delay in the arrival of the supplies was caused by terrible medical supplies being sent in the first place.

Canada also still had to pay for flights that brought all of the defective equipment overseas, which cost taxpayers $600,000 to $800,000 each. Shipping the equipment back to China likely is not being covered by the Chinese government either.

This raises the question of why Canada is not trying to move away from China economically. Clearly, in the case of Taiwan, other nearby countries can manufacture products for the Canadian market and have the common decency to not treat us like fools who will accept damaged goods.

Taiwan likely donated to Canada, despite having a smaller economy, to strengthen relations. China has, for a long time, tried to diplomatically isolate Taiwan and claim that the country is just a province of mainland China despite having zero control over the activities on Taiwan’s territory. 

Moving away from China’ economically or growing closer to Taiwan likely won’t happen under Trudeau’s Liberals, as they have throughout the COVID19 pandemic relied on the advice of the WHO, who not only parrots China’s communist government’s propaganda on COVID19 but also denies the existence of Taiwan as an independent country, which it is.

At least in the meantime, it can be recognized that on the issue of manufacturing and shipping medical supplies, Taiwan has shown itself as a vastly superior and more respectable country to China and not associated with the grifting authoritarian communist regime in Beijing.