Taiwan residents welcome to get vaccinated on mainland

The Chinese mainland will offer support for Taiwan residents who come to the mainland to receive COVID-19 vaccines as the island is in the throes of a recent outbreak but faces severe vaccine shortages, a mainland spokesman said on Wednesday.

Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks at a news conference while commenting that many Taiwan residents are crossing the Straits to get vaccinated on the mainland, including many public figures.

For example, Taiwan singer Hsiao Ching-teng and Yok Mu-ming, former president of the pro-unification New Party of Taiwan, received vaccine doses in Shanghai recently.

Julian Chen, a singer and actor from the island, posted a video of himself getting the first dose on the mainland on his social media account on June 10.

"Thanks for the love from the motherland," he wrote.

Ma said: "The feelings expressed by them after being vaccinated on the mainland reflected the close ties between the two sides of the Taiwan Straits."

As soon as the outbreak began in Taiwan, the mainland immediately expressed the willingness to make prompt arrangements to provide the island with vaccines and support nongovernmental organizations in donating them to Taiwan compatriots, Ma said.

However, "Democratic Progressive Party authorities refused the offers and even openly slandered the mainland with various excuses," he said, adding that the mainland is willing to do the utmost to help Taiwan residents who want to get vaccinated.

Taiwan residents who fly to the mainland can get vaccinated as long as they meet vaccination requirements and strictly adhere to entry epidemic prevention regulations before boarding and after arriving, Ma said.

According to preliminary statistics, the number of Taiwan compatriots vaccinated on the mainland reached 62,000 as of May 31, he said.