Former Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen will visit the Czech Republic this month, Taiwan’s presidential office said on Monday, a sensitive visit for a senior politician who Beijing has repeatedly denounced as a “separatist”.
The Czech Republic, like most countries, has no official diplomatic ties with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, but the two sides have moved closer as Beijing ratchets up military threats against the island and Taipei seeks new friends in Eastern and Central Europe.
Taiwan’s Closer Ties With Europe
Tsai, who stepped down in May, will visit Prague and deliver a speech at Forum 2000 which begins on Oct. 13, three sources briefed on the matter told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter.
While in the Czech Republic, Tsai is set to meet senior Czech and other European politicians, the sources said.
“Taiwan’s ties with the Czech Republic and Europe are getting closer and closer in recent years, especially in global geopolitics,” one of the sources with direct knowledge of Tsai’s trip said.
“Therefore, for a former president who has just left her role, the visit is particularly meaningful,” the source said.
Another source, who has direct knowledge of the trip, said the coming trip is sensitive and requires “being more cautious with safety” due to concerns of Chinese espionage and harassment.
Lai’s Support For Tsai
Taiwan’s presidential office said President Lai Ching-te “fully supported” Tsai’s visit to European countries including the Czech Republic on Oct. 12 and that he hopes to continue to deepen relations between Taiwan and Europe.
“Former president Tsai is deeply trusted internationally by democratic allies. As a former president, she represents Taiwan internationally and is Taiwan’s best spokesperson,” Lai was quoted as saying in a statement.
Forum 2000, which will hold its summit in Prague from Oct. 13-15, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tsai: An Influential Member Of DPP
China staged two rounds of war games around Taiwan during Tsai’s second term in office – in 2022 after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei, and in 2023 after Tsai returned from a visit to the United States where she met Pelosi’s successor Kevin McCarthy.
Tsai, who has a doctorate from the London School of Economics, is also due to visit two other European countries but details are not finalised, the sources said.
According to the sources, Tsai is planning to visit France and Belgium in the same trip to Europe.
In January 2023, Tsai held a call with Czech President-elect Petr Pavel, a diplomatic coup for Taiwan that angered China.
Tsai’s vice president won election in January of this year, and took over from Tsai in May.
Tsai remains a senior and influential member of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) as a senior statesperson.
China detests Lai and his party as “separatists” who refuse to recognise Beijing’s position that democratically-governed Taiwan is a part of China.
Lai, Tsai and the DPP reject Beijing’s sovereignty claims, saying only Taiwan’s people can decide their future.
Tsai’s predecessor Ma Ying-jeou, from what is currently Taiwan’s largest opposition party the Kuomintang (KMT), frequently makes overseas trips though without drawing Beijing’s ire.
Ma has met Chinese President Xi Jinping twice. The first was an historic summit in Singapore in late 2015 just before Ma left office, and the second was earlier this year in Beijing.
The KMT advocates closer ties with China but strongly denies being pro-Beijing.
(With input from Reuters)
