Premier Su Tseng-chang on Thursday received a Czech delegation led by Senator Ji Draho, chairperson of the Senate's Committee on Education, Science, Culture, Human Rights and Petitions. To promote cultural exchanges between our two regions, the premier said, Taiwan next year is establishing a cultural division under its representative office in the Czech Republic, its first such division in Central and Eastern Europe. Taiwan is also preparing to ease border restrictions in the near future. The premier expressed hope that once national borders reopen, both countries will be able to promote further people-to-people contacts, thus forming an even more solid foundation for bilateral relations.
Premier Su also said he was glad to see the Czech delegation sign memorandums of cooperation with Taiwan regarding semiconductor technology and education. In addition to strengthening collaboration in fields such as education, science and technology, Taiwan is also ready to provide outstanding young Czech students with the opportunity to come to Taiwan to study.
In his remarks, Chairperson Drahoš said the Czech government recently announced that Taiwan is one of the Czech Republic's key democratic partners in the Indo-Pacific area, and that he not only fully supports that policy statement, but is also proud that his country is the only one in the whole European Union having such a strong position. The Czech government supports Taiwan's meaningful participation in organizations such as the World Health Organization and the International Civil Aviation Organization. Chairperson Drahoš also hopes for a direct flight connection between Taipei and Prague, which he believes could increase two-way tourist travel and have a positive effect on mutual business cooperation.
The chairperson also thanked Taiwan for its willingness to help the Czech Republic build a semiconductor R&D center. During their visit to the Hsinchu Science Park, the delegation could see that Taiwan is a global leader in smart chip design and manufacturing. At the end of October, a delegation from Taiwan universities will visit the Czech Republic to promote their semiconductor programs to Czech students, which Chairperson Drahoš firmly believes will contribute to strengthening bilateral cooperation in chip design and R&D, and create a more robust semiconductor industry ecosystem in his country.