00:00The Czech Republic's prime minister has recently said that he wouldn't provide a government plane for the Senate Speaker's upcoming
00:07visit to Taiwan.
00:08And he also said that some high-level visits in the past had hurt the country's business with China.
00:14I'm wondering what this signals about the prime minister's overall stance on ties with Taiwan.
00:20Recent remarks from Prime Minister Babish concerning the upcoming visit at the end of May of the Speaker of the
00:27House are not unexpected.
00:28I mean, since he formed his government, we've seen signals that perhaps the Czech Republic would change its position.
00:37And that position was kind of solid and consolidated prior to his government under the previous government to go forward
00:47with a relationship with Taiwan that is rooted in common and shared values, but also pursues interests.
00:56So what we see under current government is a turn away from values, as I believe he himself said, and
01:05focusing on interest because focus on values would hurt economic interest.
01:10But what I would add here is that there is a solid foundation to the relationship between the Czech Republic
01:17and Taiwan.
01:19So I think we have to pay attention to the political dynamics and signaling because it's extremely important going forward
01:28also in the relationship that the Czech Republic has with China.
01:32But I think what we need to focus on is where we are to recognize that we have a solid
01:38foundation that is rooted in business ties and people to people and cultural relations.
01:43We have tons of examples that have really led to where we are.
01:48Ties between the Czech Republic and Taiwan have been deepening significantly in recent years.
01:53Do you see this new government seeking to change the direction of those ties?
01:59It's hard to say what a new government wants to see in terms of its relations with China.
02:05We have clear signaling from this new government that China is going to be prioritized, but we also hear the
02:14new prime minister say that this government will have a pragmatic approach.
02:18Now, if it is a pragmatic approach, it means that business is business.
02:23Whatever serves the Czech Republic's interests will be prioritized.
02:28Business with Taiwan definitely serves the Czech Republic's interests.
02:31And I think this is something that, again, I see only as a smart approach going forward.
02:38I believe that if the current government claims to be pragmatic, that it cannot neglect a source of investment and
02:48a positive relationship that has contributed so much to the Czech Republic in recent years and turn to a partner
02:56that has failed to deliver on its commitments.
02:58Why have we seen the prime minister concerned with improving its business with China and broadening its access to the
03:05Chinese market?
03:07This is not uniquely Czech.
03:09I believe that countries and I believe that companies across Europe have an interest in staying and having access to
03:18the Chinese market.
03:19This is very much a European demand, I would say, because we've seen an asymmetry and lack of access to
03:26the Chinese market for European companies.
03:28So I think Czech companies must have the same access and reciprocal access that Chinese companies have.
03:36So this is not wrong, but it should not come at the expense of a relationship and a business partnership
03:43that already has proven to be solid and delivering.
03:49You
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