A Taiwanese trade delegation visiting Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Lithuania has touted its dazzling achievements, but sustaining the momentum of mutual interest requires solid plans.
The delegation signed seven memorandums of understanding (MOU) in Slovakia, five in the Czech Republic and six in Lithuania during its trip from Oct. 20 to yesterday, the National Development Council said.
The MOUs aim to promote cooperation in electric vehicle manufacturing, space technology, business digitalization, tourism, science park cooperation, cybersecurity, catalyst technology, green energy, smart machinery, semiconductors, biotechnology, finance and so forth, the council said.
However, it is questionable how many of the MOUs can yield concrete results.
The government reportedly began drafting the delegation’s itinerary about two months ago, after the European countries donated COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan, and after Beijing began pressing Lithuania to drop its plan for a Taiwanese representative office in Vilnius.
The delegation’s itinerary was kept separate from that of Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), as his visits to Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Brussels at about the same time involved greater political considerations.
Following their trip, the members of the trade delegation should assess whether they understand the needs of the countries they visited and how to foster future cooperation.
For example, Czech and Lithuanian officials have expressed hope that Taiwanese semiconductor suppliers would open production facilities in their countries. While some Taiwanese electronics companies such as Foxconn Technology Group and Delta Electronics have invested in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, countries in the region are obviously anticipating more.
While the government might not be able to intervene in a private company’s investment plans, it should work with host countries to reduce potential barriers and increase incentives for investors to those countries.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) in July said it was considering to open a factory in Germany. While the plan seems not yet finalized, Silicon Saxony, a semiconductor cluster in Dresden, Germany, might be the most practical location. If that is true, TSMC might bring new suppliers to the region, as Saxony is close to Germany’s borders with the Czech Republic and Poland.
While opening a new factory might need more planning, some smaller steps can be taken to facilitate personal interactions and goods transportation.
During his visit to Taiwan as part of Czech Senate President Milos Vystrcil’s delegation last year, Prague Mayor Zdenek Hrib said that he met with China Airlines chairman Hsieh Shih-chien (謝世謙), and that Hsieh expressed support for direct flights between Taipei and Prague.
However, the issue seems to have been shelved, and the airline played no role in the Taiwanese trade delegation’s trip.
Following the Czech delegation’s visit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also listed 22 achievements of bilateral interactions, including several MOUs that were signed. The two countries have indeed become closer in politics, but it is unclear how these MOUs help promote cooperation.
Some European countries have expressed their disappointment over Beijing’s empty promises in boosting investment and infrastructure. Knowing this, Taiwan should make itself a trustworthy partner and avoid making hollow promises.
Perhaps the government could start by using more than MOUs to prove its sincerity.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is an expert at bluffing and keeping the West on its toes, pushing relations to the edge before pivoting without warning. However, hemmed in and fuming, he is deadly serious about being heard on Ukraine. Those close to the Kremlin said that the Russian president does not want to start another war in Ukraine. Still, he must show he is ready to fight if necessary in order to stop what he sees as an existential security threat: the creeping expansion of the NATO in a country that for centuries had been part of Russia. After years of disillusionment
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) sixth plenary session has ended and from all appearances, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has set the stage to rule for the rest of his life. Some might be tempted to declare that this calls for Xi to do a victory lap, but all is not well on the other side of the Taiwan Strait. To parody a line from Ya Got Trouble, a song from Broadway musical The Music Man: “There’s trouble in River City, (aka, Beijing). Trouble with a capital T, which rhymes with C for CCP.” Why? Taking control of a nation is always much
Among the voices expressing concern for Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai (彭帥) over the past two weeks, one was barely audible — that of her long-time former doubles partner Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇). Following their defeat in the WTA Finals championship match in Mexico on Nov. 18, Taiwan’s Hsieh and her Belgian partner Elise Mertens fielded questions via a Zoom call. Chinese state media had just released an incredibly suspicious e-mail, purportedly from Peng, and Canadian tennis Web site Open Court broached the issue. With the entire tennis world chiming in, seeking Hsieh’s opinion seemed obvious. However, the Web site’s reporter prefaced her question
When analyzing Taiwan-China tensions, most people assume that the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) consists of rational actors. Embedded within this belief are three further suppositions: First, Beijing would only launch an attack on Taiwan if it were in China’s national interest; second, it would only attack if the odds were overwhelmingly in its favor; and third, Chinese decisionmakers interpret information objectively and through the same lens as other actors. These assumptions have underpinned recent analyses — including by Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) — concluding that there is no
RSS