Czech Senate President Visits Taiwan's Economic Ministries; NDC Announces €50 Million Top-Up for Czech Investment

(Central News Agency, Taipei, 4th) Minister of Economic Affairs Mei-Hsin Kung and National Development Council (NDC) Minister Chun-Hsien Yeh met with a delegation led by Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil today. Kung stated that Taiwan established a US$200 million Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Investment Fund and a US$1 billion CEE Financing Fund in 2022, noting that the Czech Republic currently has the highest number of investment cases. Yeh announced an additional allocation of €50 million under the existing CEE Investment Fund framework to launch the "CEE Investment Fund Czech Top-Up Program," further promoting bilateral investment and technical cooperation between Taiwan and the Czech Republic.

In his remarks, Kung pointed out that Vystrčil led the largest-ever Czech delegation to Taiwan in 2020 and delivered a speech, which became a warm and profound memory for Taiwanese society during the pandemic. In 2021, he himself led a Taiwanese delegation to the Czech Republic, initiating a closer cooperative relationship that remains strong today.

Kung noted that the Czech Republic has always been one of Taiwan's most important and reliable partners in Central and Eastern Europe. In recent years, the two sides have achieved concrete results in aviation, trade, education, and semiconductors. Notably, a direct flight route between Taipei and Prague has been established, and if STARLUX Airlines joins operations, there will be daily direct flights between Taiwan and the Czech Republic.

Kung mentioned that Taiwan's Export-Import Bank and Taiwan Cooperative Bank have established offices in Prague, and the Ministry of Economic Affairs set up a "Taiwan Trade and Investment Center" in Prague in 2024 to assist Taiwanese companies in investing and expanding in the Czech market.

Regarding investment mechanisms, Kung stated that Taiwan established the US$200 million CEE Investment Fund and the US$1 billion CEE Financing Fund in 2022, and "among all investment cases, the Czech Republic has the highest number."

On industrial cooperation, Kung said that Taiwan-Czech semiconductor collaboration is showing results. This includes Taiwan's Zen Semi participating in an advanced chip design research center project in Brno, Czech Republic, and establishing a local presence for chip design. Additionally, Ai Feng Transportation, which specializes in semiconductor chemical transport logistics, entered the Czech market in May, indicating that Taiwan's semiconductor supply chain is gradually taking shape in the Czech Republic.

In the AI field, he pointed out that Taiwanese companies like Foxconn have established numerous AI server-related facilities in the Czech Republic and have expressed interest in collaborating with the Czech Republic on projects like the EU's AI Gigafactory.

Furthermore, Kung stated that the Czech Republic is currently Taiwan's largest drone cooperation partner in Central and Eastern Europe and also the largest export market for Taiwanese drone products in the region. Exchanges in smart cities and talent cultivation are also deepening.

Kung emphasized that amidst the global supply chain restructuring, the shared values of freedom and democracy between Taiwan and the Czech Republic will continue to deepen their cooperative relationship, making them the most trustworthy partners.

NDC Minister Chun-Hsien Yeh noted that as the industrial chains between Taiwan and the Czech Republic become increasingly interconnected, their cooperation has gradually transformed into concrete results. To further promote bilateral investment, the NDC will collaborate with the Ministry of Economic Affairs to allocate an additional €50 million under the existing CEE Investment Fund framework to launch the "CEE Investment Fund Czech Top-Up Program."

He said this fund will be specifically used to invest in Taiwanese companies looking to enter the Czech market, Czech companies looking to enter the Taiwanese market, and companies jointly cooperating between Taiwan and the Czech Republic. The goal is to transform the friendly bilateral relations into more concrete results in bilateral investment and technical exchange, jointly creating a new chapter in Taiwan-Czech economic and trade cooperation.

Vystrčil thanked Kung for his years of efforts in promoting Taiwan-Czech relations and stated that during their approximately half-hour exchange earlier, they discussed topics including the Taipei-Prague direct flight, supply chain resilience plans, joint aid to Ukraine, and nuclear energy cooperation.

Vystrčil said that Taiwan-Czech relations now stand on a solid foundation, and the next step is to continue deepening cooperation and expanding results. He expressed hope that businesses from both sides would use this exchange to propose more cooperation plans, further promoting economic, trade, and industrial collaboration. (Editor: Pan Yi-ching) 1150604