Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday is to go on an eight-day trip to the Czech Republic and reportedly two other European countries, marking her first international trip since leaving office in May. The trip, which has the full support of President William Lai (賴清德), highlights Taipei’s efforts to deepen ties with like-minded European countries, with Lai calling Tsai the “best spokesperson” for Taiwan.
Tsai confirmed that she is to deliver a speech at the Forum 2000 conference in Prague, an event that was founded by former Czech president Vaclav Havel and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel to support the values of democracy and respect for human rights, and to share Taiwan’s experience of working toward democracy and prosperity.
Tsai is also to visit France and Belgium to meet with high-ranking European politicians, with details of the trip expected to be unveiled soon, Reuters said.
She wrote on Facebook that she hopes “more like-minded forces in the international community could come together to respond to the severe political and economic challenges ahead.”
Even though China has voiced objections to the trip and is likely to retaliate against countries hosting the former leader, Tsai’s visit on Prague’s invitation, following a historic phone call between Tsai and then-Czech president-elect Petr Pavel last year and vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) visit in March, further accentuated that Taiwan has forged a close relationship with the central European country.
Facing escalating military threats and diplomatic exclusion from China, Taiwan should explore more exposure and seek more strategic friendships in the international arena. “Ex-president” diplomacy could be a great help in elevating the administration of Lai.
In her eight-year presidency, Tsai earned the deep trust of international allies. In her second term, Taiwan opened an office in Lithuania named the “Taiwanese Representative Office,” instead of the traditional title the “Taipei Representative Office.” She also sent the minister of foreign affairs to Europe to boost trade and investment exchanges, including encouraging Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co to build a factory in Germany, and set up special industrial zones in the Czech Republic and other European nations.
Tsai also had the highest satisfaction and evaluation ratings among Taiwanese presidents in the past 24 years, especially in the diplomacy and national defense categories, polls have shown.
A Mirror News survey showed that Tsai had a 61.4 public satisfaction score, much higher than former presidents Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) 54.3 and Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) 54.2.
A TVBS survey also showed that Tsai’s public satisfaction ratio (42 percent) was 19 percentage points higher than Ma’s (23 percent), who has made controversial statements while traveling abroad, such as “Taiwan has no choice but to trust Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平),” which was heavily rebuked by Taiwanese and potentially led to the defeat of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in the presidential election this year.
Lai has also instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense to help organize Tsai’s visit to Europe.
Lai’s support shows the government’s commitment to building a strong “national diplomatic team” to include the former president and demonstrates his will to continue Tsai’s strategic approach in international diplomacy and cross-strait relations.
Lai has said he would continue Tsai’s “four pillars of peace” plan for Taiwan’s defense, hoping to reduce uncertainty or questions regarding his foreign policies.
As a private civilian, Tsai’s visit to Europe might not reach concrete agreements or results, but it definitely carries strategic importance and significance in delivering the democratic values and pragmatic diplomacy advocated by Lai to the international community.
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