The Czech parliamentary elections have concluded, with the “Action of Dissatisfied Citizens” (ANO) emerging victorious. The election results are expected to impact domestic politics in the Czech Republic as well as the direction of relations with Taiwan. Simona Fantová, a research fellow at the Czech think tank “Sinopsis,” highlighted in an interview with the Central News Agency that the new government may not necessarily cool off relations with Taiwan, as the Czech society generally holds a favorable view towards Taiwan. She mentioned that even if the government considers policy adjustments, it cannot ignore public opinion.
The Czech parliamentary elections wrapped up on the 4th day, with the “Action of Dissatisfied Citizens” led by former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis winning the most votes, securing 80 seats in the 200-seat Chamber of Deputies. Fantová analyzed that ANO’s victory was not due to the attractiveness of its policies but rather due to the dissatisfaction of Czech citizens with the current government.
Explaining further, she stated, “In fact, the current government’s performance is not bad, but they are facing too many crises, such as a large influx of Ukrainian refugees and severe domestic inflation, causing anxiety among the general public about their living standards. Many people are not completely rejecting the government’s governance, but rather expressing protest by voting for ANO.”
Fantová pointed out that the current government’s greatest weakness lies in “poor communication,” as they have failed to clearly explain the reasons behind their policies to the public, leading to a loss of support and allowing populist parties to rise.
Addressing controversies in Czech politics, Fantová noted that both the ruling and opposition parties have their own scandals, such as the “Bitcoin scandal” that erupted in the Czech Ministry of Justice in May of this year, and Andrej Babis’ long-running legal battle over the “Stork Nest” affair. These cases have eroded public trust in the political system and have become tools for parties to attack each other.
Regarding the impact of ANO coming into power on Taiwan-Czech relations, Fantová indicated that while foreign policy is short and vague in ANO’s 90-page manifesto, it was not a core issue in this election.
Fantová believes that the future government of ANO may not openly support Taiwan or Ukraine as the current government does, but it may not necessarily cool off relations with Taiwan either. She pointed out that “because the Czech society generally has a favorable view towards Taiwan, the government, even if it wants to adjust its policies, cannot ignore public opinion.”
Fantová mentioned that even with a change of government, Taiwan-Czech exchanges will not significantly regress, as the Czech society generally has some understanding of Taiwan. She stated, “Although they may not fully understand the One-China policy and principle, they generally know that Taiwan is a free society and sympathize with the pressures it faces.”
Founder of “Sinopsis,” Martin Hála, shares a similar view. He has mentioned that the Czech public is now one of the most critical groups in Europe towards the Chinese Communist Party, while also harboring deep sympathy and support for Taiwan. Hála emphasized, “Such public support is something that any new government would find difficult to ignore.”
Hála stated that since the time of the first Czech President Václav Havel, Taiwan-Czech relations have been very friendly, with substantial economic achievements. Additionally, Czech and Taiwan share common values – respect for democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, as well as a mutual understanding of the current global geopolitical risks, making them true partners.
Hála expressed that Czech policies towards China providing support to Taiwan have built a solid societal foundation and are not easy for a ruling party to shift away from. “Czech society has developed ‘immunity’ against the pro-China policies of former President Zeman,” he said, believing that the new government will not return to the naive pro-China policies of the past.
Reflecting on the last ten years of relations between China and the Czech Republic, Fantová noted a more pro-China stance during the Zeman era. In 2016, during a visit to the Czech Republic by Chinese President Xi Jinping, some Czech people protested with flags of Taiwan and Tibet, but the supporters of China began to attack the peaceful demonstrators, and the Czech police failed to protect the lawful protesters, leaving a very negative impression of China on Czech society.
Since then, Czech people have gradually realized the potential negative impact that China may have on the Czech Republic, leading to a cautious and alert attitude towards China. Additionally, the Czech Republic was occupied by Nazi Germany during WWII, ruled by the Czechoslovak Communist Party after the war, and invaded by the Soviet Union, creating an instinctive aversion to authoritarian regimes among the people.
Fantová also mentioned the case of China’s CEFC Energy in the Czech Republic, considering it a significant turning point in the erosion of trust between China and the Czech Republic. She mentioned how CEFC, under close ties with Zeman, made many promises of large-scale investments during its time but failed to fulfill many of them, with China only purchasing a Czech football team and a brewery, providing limited economic benefits.
She added that the owner of CEFC, Ye Jianming, later “disappeared” in China, exposing the corrupt nature of CEFC and severely damaging the Czech society’s trust in Chinese investments. Even with China’s later attempt to hand over operations to the China CITIC Group, it failed to restore the crisis of impression and trust that the Czech Republic holds towards China.
As a businessman by background, Babis’ foreign policy views have also been influenced by his personal investment experiences. Fantová pointed out that Babis had attempted investments in China and Poland but due to a lack of government support and failed investments, he formed a negative impression of both countries.
In summary, while the current political environment in the Czech Republic is uncertain, the Taiwan-Czech relationship has a solid popular foundation, and the government cannot easily weaken cooperation with Taiwan.