Taiwan intends to strengthen its relations with Israel despite global criticism of the country’s war in Gaza, as Israel has extended rare support for the self-ruled island among Middle Eastern nations, Foreign Minister Lin Chia-Lung said on Wednesday.

“We will be friendly to countries that are friendly to us,” Lin told reporters, noting that a declaration by 72 Israeli lawmakers earlier this year supporting Taiwan’s participation in major international organizations demonstrates Israel’s goodwill.

Lin criticized Palestine for siding with Beijing’s “One-China” principle, which claims Taiwan as part of China, saying, “Palestine is very bad to Taiwan.”

He said human rights and national interests must go hand in hand, speaking at an event organized by the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents’ Club.

Taipei faced backlash earlier this year over its plan to donate to a medical center in an Israeli settlement in the West Bank — an area the International Court of Justice ruled as illegally occupied by Israel.

Asked if the government had scrapped that donation, Lin avoided a direct answer, saying Taiwan’s priority was humanitarian aid amid the Israel-Hamas conflict. “We provide a lot of humanitarian assistance to both sides, including Gaza and Palestine,” he said.

Lin added that other nations could learn from Taiwan’s experience in dealing with China, particularly in areas such as gray-zone tactics, telecommunications, and data security.

Last week, Lin joined Vice President Bi-Khim Hsiao on a rare visit to Brussels, where Hsiao called on the European Union to deepen security and trade engagement with Taiwan.