Why is this topic relevant? The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Markéta Pekarová Adamová, is in Taiwan these days with the largest delegation ever, comprising over 150 people. The delegation is made up of representatives from the ranks of politicians, security experts and business. In addition, the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies inaugurated the Czech Hub in Taipei, which should contribute to strengthening Czech-Taiwanese relations. The founders of the Czech Hub are the European Values Security Centre and the Czech-Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce.
The Czech Republic is currently a European leader in strengthening relations with Taiwan. Czech political representatives have visited the Hub in recent years, including the then Mayor of Prague, Zdeněk Hřib, and the President of the Senate, Miloš Vystrčil. Shortly after his election, President Petr Pavel called Taiwanese President Tsai Jing-wen and mentioned that he was looking forward to a personal meeting. He thus became the first elected head of state in Europe to speak directly with his Taiwanese counterpart in this way. Moreover, the above-mentioned Czech Hub is not the only Czech footprint in Taiwan. In January 2022, European Values opened its office in Taipei, making it the first ever European think tank with a permanent office.
What should the Czech Republic do next? In Taiwan, Chairwoman Pekarova Adamová spoke about further expanding Czech-Taiwanese relations. This includes representatives of Czech ministries, including science and research.” When considering further steps, the Czech Republic could take inspiration from our eastern neighbours. Last year, Slovakia was the first EU country to sign an agreement with Taiwan on judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters. The agreement is intended to strengthen information sharing between the two sides on civil and commercial legal issues, respond to requests for assistance in civil and commercial matters and initiate regular meetings to facilitate cooperation in these areas.
In the case of the Czech Republic, this step would further contribute to the institutionalisation of the already established and currently deepening economic relations with Taiwan, while strengthening the protection of the legal rights of entrepreneurs on both sides.
