Thankful for Taiwan’s generous donation of 500,000 masks. Canada and all free democracies must stand against the Communist Party of China’s attempts to keep Taiwan out of the World Health Organization. pic.twitter.com/QRtYZesW7C

— Andrew Scheer (@AndrewScheer) May 5, 2020

A spokesperson for the office confirmed the handover took place on Monday.

The masks arrived in separate shipments from Taipei between April 24 and 28, and officials from the Public Health Agency of Canada then spent “a few days” conducting compliance tests to ensure they could be used, the spokesperson said.

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A press release from the Taipei office on April 28 announcing the donation says 400,000 of the masks will go to the Canadian Red Cross, who will distribute them to hospitals, front-line workers and Indigenous communities.

Out of the remainder, 50,000 masks will be sent to Ontario, while Alberta and British Columbia will each receive 25,000. The office said the premiers of those provinces made formal requests for the deliveries.

The office’s representative, Ambassador Winston Wen-yi Chen, said in the release that the donation was a chance for Taiwan to “extend a helping hand to the frontline medical staff in Canada.”