President of the Czech Senate, Mr. Vítice, speaking during his visit to Taiwan on August 31, 2020.
Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil quoted former U.S. President John F. Kennedy’s famous 1963 speech, “I am a Berliner,” during a speech in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan on Tuesday.
He also said in Chinese, “I am a Taiwanese,” which received a standing ovation from Taiwanese legislators.
Speaker Vitecki’s speech lasted about 30 minutes and was entitled “Democracies stand united in defending common values. This was the second time after 45 years of absence from the Legislative Yuan that a foreign speaker addressed the floor of the legislature. He is also the first speaker from a country that is not a diplomatic partner to address the Taiwan Legislative Yuan.
He said that he firmly believes that every democrat has an obligation to support all those who defend democratic principles and build democracy, and he was honored to visit Taiwan to exchange experiences, support each other, and expand cooperation as a representative of Congress on foreign relations.
During the press conference after his speech, Chancellor Vučić also explained the main reasons for his visit to Taiwan, firstly, to seek new partners for entrepreneurs and to strengthen exchanges in the fields of economy, science and technology, innovation and R&D. Secondly, to ensure the sovereignty and integrity of the Czech Republic. Secondly, to ensure the sovereignty and independence of the Czech Republic, he said. He said that in a democratic world, we should not take orders from other countries, especially from non-democratic countries. Finally, Taiwan is a democratic country and shares common values with the Czech Republic.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently said that Speaker Vitecchi would pay a heavy price for his visit to Taiwan. Later, the Czech Foreign Ministry summoned the Chinese ambassador to the Czech Republic to express dissatisfaction with Wang Yi’s remarks.
Wang Dingyu, a member of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said that Taiwan has been placed in a corner of the international order for decades and has never experienced normal international interactions, so the moment I witnessed the Czech Parliament Speaker’s speech in the Taiwan Legislative Yuan, I felt a complex emotion.
He said, “At the end, I heard him say that I am a Taiwanese, and in the shape of this phrase, just like when JFK was in West Berlin and saw the German (West) Berliners facing East Berlin, in the forefront of democracy, at that moment, we thought it was really well said.”
Mr. Wang added that he expects 2020 to be an important year for Taiwan to get back on track with mainstream international society, and the visit of Czech Senate President Wittmann will be a good start.
Speaking of China’s dissatisfaction with the Czech Republic, Mr. Wang said that China is a big country, and a big country’s civilization should not be presented in such a way. Wang Yi’s public intimidation of the Czech Senate President has triggered condemnation from both pro-China and pro-Taiwan factions in the Czech Republic, and he stressed the need to back up Mr. Vitecki.
Wang also expects the European Union to take a consistent position with the Czech Republic to avoid the Czech Republic facing pressure from China alone, as this is not only a matter of friendship between Taiwan and the Czech Republic, but also an important choice between democracy and dictatorship for the whole world.
In an interview with the Voice of America, Taiwan’s largest opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT) legislator Chen Yu-zhen expressed her gratitude to Speaker Wittmann for affirming the value of democracy and freedom in Taiwan with concrete actions.
She said, “Democracy and freedom is the root of everything and the greatest strength of the Republic of China, and we must uphold it.”
Commissioner Chen also noted that the Republic of China is a small country in a difficult diplomatic situation and would welcome further visits from dignitaries from other countries.
Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen will receive a delegation led by Czech Senate President Vitec at the presidential palace on September 3. Earlier, Tsai also said that she will carry out in-depth exchanges with the Czech Republic in all aspects.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian recently reiterated at a regular press conference that Taiwan is an inseparable part of China, and that no separatist activities for Taiwan independence will succeed.
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