Taiwan has landed a diplomatic first as the leader of a major Canadian party brings a delegation to Taipei, a modest but positive win for Taipei's push to widen its friendships.

• Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet led the party's first-ever delegation to Taiwan, and the first trip by a sitting Canadian party leader.
• Blanchet called for closer ties between Taiwan and Quebec, especially in critical minerals, energy, telecoms networks, and advanced research.
• Taiwan pitched itself as the trusted partner for countries trying to build their own secure tech infrastructure, leaning on its chip and server manufacturing.
• Taipei framed the visit as proof of cross-party support in Canada's parliament, useful at a time when Beijing pressures countries to keep their distance.

Outlook: Expect Taiwan to chase more of these party-level visits and to turn the Quebec talks into concrete deals on minerals and tech supply chains.