A democratic Taiwan is in the Czech Republic’s best interests, Czech president-elect Petr Pavel said on Thursday, adding that he looks forward to meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
Two days after winning the presidential election on Jan. 28, Pavel spoke on the telephone with Tsai, becoming the first elected European head of state to do so. Beijing issued a stern protest in response.
In an interview with Germannewspaper Die Zeit, Pavel said that it is not a matter of tradition, but dignity, to speak with the president of a country maintaining broad economic and trade relations with the Czech Republic when they call to congratulate you on winning an election.
Photo: AFP
Speaking on the telephone with Tsai was not deliberately meant to provoke China, but it was only to be expected that China felt provoked, Pavel said.
As the elected head of a sovereign state he respected the “one China” concept, Pavel said, adding that the Czech Republic has its own “one China” policy, and the essential tenet is preserving peace across the Taiwan Strait.
The Czech Republic values Taiwan’s democratic system and believes that such a system not only benefits Taiwanese, but also Czechs, Pavel said, adding that he looks forward to meeting Tsai, but it would not necessarily be under the framework of a state visit.
Asked about the increasingly hard-line rhetoric the Czech Republic and other eastern European nations are using with regard to Russia and China, Pavel said the Czech Republic should not let others decide or threaten it over who its people can call or meet.
If such threats were effective, more powerful and aggressive nations would take that as a sign of weakness, which could lead to military invasions, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he said.
The Czech Republic should avoid making the mistake of giving in to China’s threats, as it has been demonstrated that the more ground one gives, the more pressure China puts on the Czech Republic to do things its way, Pavel said.
In related news, Czech Chamber of Deputies Speaker Marketa Pekarova Adamova is expected to visit Taiwan near the end of this month.
Amadova would be leading a delegation of 170 people, most of whom would be traveling to Taiwan on Czech government-chartered flights, said a source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
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