Analysis: Taiwan's Warming Ties With the Czech Republic
Taiwan's warming ties with the Czech Republic are based on a growing economic and political affinity, says Marcin Jerzewski of the European Values Center for Security Policy. But he adds this may not be a strong enough reason for other EU members that depend more dependent on China economically to become closer with Taiwan.
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00:00 A growing number of Czech politicians and officials have been making visits to Taiwan
00:05 with some really historic trips taking place in the past several years.
00:08 So what's behind this apparent deepening of ties?
00:12 At normative level, the Czech Republic has sought to build on the legacy of Vaclav Havel,
00:18 the first democratic president of the Czech Republic, who was a tremendous supporter of
00:24 Taiwan and the foreign policy orientation of the Czech Republic has changed to include
00:31 efforts to cooperate more closely with like-minded democratic partners, among which is Taiwan.
00:37 But when it comes to the pragmatic dimension of cooperation, Taiwan has also positioned itself as
00:43 a strong economic partner of the Czech Republic. A number of Taiwanese companies have invested in
00:49 the Czech Republic, including some of the flagship names of the Taiwanese economy, like Foxconn.
00:56 Taiwanese companies are starting to ramp up investment in the EU, with the most notable
01:01 case being TSMC's planned fab in Germany, which just so happens to border the Czech Republic.
01:07 Is it possible that the Czech government's moves to improve ties
01:11 with Taiwan are a way to direct some of that investment their way?
01:15 Definitely. And I believe that the investment of TSMC in Dresden might have
01:21 positive spillover effects for Central Eastern European countries, including the Czech Republic.
01:26 The Taiwanese government has made significant efforts to expand the capacity of countries like
01:32 the Czech Republic and Slovenia to participate in production of semiconductors and find their
01:41 own place in supply chains, for example, by participating in packaging and testing of
01:48 semiconductors, which will be manufactured in Dresden.
01:51 So the Czech Republic is not the only EU member that is moving closer to Taiwan. Lithuania has
01:56 also improved relations in recent years. Can we view these two countries as a benchmark for broader
02:02 EU ties with Taiwan?
02:04 Unfortunately, we are still seeing quite a lot of fragmentation within the European Union when
02:09 it comes to creating a united stance vis-Ã -vis Beijing and vis-Ã -vis Taipei. Some of the
02:17 European Union member states are more exposed than Central Eastern European states to China
02:22 and are more dependent on engagement with the Chinese economy. I think that it will take some
02:28 time before we can see more unity from the European Union in engaging Taiwan.
02:33 [BLANK_AUDIO]