Global Times
Date: 2020/6/9
By: Yang Sheng

The speaker of the Czech Republic's Senate announced on Tuesday that he will visit China's Taiwan, a move which shows support for the separatist Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities on the island, despite warnings from the Chinese mainland and a recommendation from his own government that he not take the trip. Analysts said China's retaliation should precisely hit politicians who provoke China's sovereignty and avoid harming innocent Czech companies in China.

According to the Associated Press (AP), Milos Vystrcil said he would be accompanied by a business delegation on his visit, which is tentatively scheduled to begin on August 30. Vystrcil said he was also planning to meet Taiwan's regional leaders, but didn't immediately give details.

Vystrcil's predecessor in the post, Jaroslav Kubera, was planning to travel to Taiwan before he died in January. His plans angered Czech President Milos Zeman who respects the one-China principle and paid efforts to build friendly ties with China.

The DPP authorities have spent a lot of resources on making trouble regarding China-Czech ties and divide the relationship between the Czech Republic government and the Senate in recent years citing different excuses. The separatist authorities expressed their "welcome" to the plan made by Vystrcil, and said that the trip "will advance cooperation and interactions between Taiwan and the Czech Republic in economic, technological, medical, tourism, and cultural areas."    [FULL  STORY]