Study finds that Czechia holds several EU firsts in relations with Taiwan

A new study by the think-tank CEIAS, which focuses on Europe–Asia relations, finds that Czechia holds several EU firsts in its relationship with Taiwan and is regarded as one of the island’s strongest European allies. The study adds that these ties are unlikely to be affected by the recent change of government in Prague.

Among these firsts was the 2020 visit to Taiwan by Miloš Vystrčil, the first speaker of an upper parliamentary chamber from an EU member state to do so. Czechia also recorded the first phone call between a newly elected European head of state and a Taiwanese president, when Petr Pavel spoke with Tsai Ing-wen, and opened the first European think-tank with a permanent presence in Taiwan through the Prague-based European Values Centre.

The relationship has helped boost Taiwanese investment in Czechia, which totalled more than CZK 19.4bn between 1995 and 2022 and created around 24,000 jobs.