Taiwan has sent two military aircraft to deliver 10 metric tons of emergency supplies over the Christmas weekend to the Philippines to help the Southeast Asian country recover from the devastation caused by Super Typhoon Rai.
The two military C-130 aircraft departed from southern Pingtung Air Base to Mactan-Cebu International Airport on late Saturday and early Sunday respectively, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said in a press release.
The two aircraft carried a total of 10 metric tons of emergency supplies, including food rations, cookies, instant noodles, bottled water, canned food, and portable water filters, stated the press release.
The supplies were donated by the Taiwan government, according to MOFA.
Taiwan’s top envoy to Manila, Michael Hsu (???), was at the airport to receive the supplies and would soon hand them over to the Philippines’ National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), it said.
“MOFA would like to express our sympathy and condolences to those affected, and hope that the country makes a speedy recovery,” it added.
Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (???) said in a tweet that the super typhoon had caused destruction and heavy casualties in the Philippines.
“It ruined Christmas for many and hit us hard too as we truly care about our Filipino brothers and sisters. Fortunately, Taiwan’s ROCAF C-130 flew in supplies quickly. Hang in there, more are coming,” he tweeted. ROCAF stands for Republic of China Air Force. The ROC refers to Taiwan’s official name.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel