Czech delegation visit Taiwan, China warns of ‘Heavy Price’

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said that the Speaker of the Senate of the Czech Republic, Miloš Vystrčil, will have to pay a heavy price for violating the “One China” principle by visiting Taiwan.

According to reports, the President of the Senate of the Czech Republic is visiting Taiwan with a 90-member delegation, including the Mayor of Paraguay, despite strong opposition from China.

The reports stated that the purpose of the visit is to promote trade ties with Taiwan, which China claims and seeks to isolate itself from the world.

Miloš Vystrčil said the Czech Republic would not bow to the objections of Beijing, which considers Taiwan a broken province.

Chinese state TV quoted top diplomat Wang Yi as saying the visit was “provocative” and that Taiwan was “an integral part of China.”

This is the second visit by a high-level foreign delegation to Taiwan in two weeks. Earlier, US Secretary of Health Alex Azar visited the island.

The five-day visit of the Czech delegation will end on September 4, during which the President of the Czech Senate is expected to address the Parliament of Taiwan and will also meet with President Tsai Ing-wen.

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According to the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, the Czech Republic does not have formal relations with Taiwan, but it is the Central European country, Taiwan‘s fourth-largest investment destination in Europe.

The report says that Taiwan has had an independent government since 1949, but China considers it, its part and has vowed to seize it by force if necessary.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry official said that the members of the delegation were acting in their own interests and that the insistence on going to Taiwan for this so-called visit was breaking the political foundation of China-Czech      Republic relations or Sino–Czech relations.

A statement posted on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website said that the Chinese government and people will not sit idly by and pay a heavy price for their narrow-mindedness and political speculation.

On the other hand, the Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic has said that he will summon the Chinese Ambassador to Paraguay (Czech capital) following the statement of Chinese State Councilor Wang Yi to pay a heavy price for the visit.

He said that although his government was not in favour of the visit, he wanted clarification of the Chinese official’s statement.