Czech Republic and Taiwan announce wide-reaching economic collaboration

Prague, Oct 26 (CTK) - The Czech Republic and Taiwan want to strengthen their cooperation in science, healthcare, cyber security and other spheres, senator Jiří Drahoš (Mayors and Independents, STAN) and Taiwanese Minister for Science and Technology Wu Tsung-tsong agreed at their meeting today.

They consider this cooperation vital, especially in light of the coronavirus pandemic. After the meeting, Drahoš confirmed to journalists that he is planning a trip to Taiwan next year which had previously been postponed due to the pandemic.

As the chairman of the Senate education, science and culture committee, Drahoš also met with experts from Czech technological universities and the director of the National Museum in Prague as part of the visit. Along with culture and cyber security, the meeting focused on next steps and enhancing cooperation in relation to the Covid pandemic.

Wu Tsung-tsong is part of the 66-member Taiwanese trade delegation which arrived in the Czech Republic as part of regular bilateral economic consultations staged since 2016 in cooperation with the Czech Industry and Trade Ministry.

The embassy of China protested against the visit by the Taiwanese delegation to the Czech Republic. China considers Taiwan its own territory, and takes a negative view of any recognition of Taiwan as an independent state abroad.

On Monday, Czech and Taiwanese representatives signed five new memoranda seeking deepened cooperation in cybersecurity, the space industry, the development of catalyst technologies and precision engineering.