China protests Czech visit by top Taiwanese diplomat

By Saadet Gokce

ISTANBUL (AA) – China lodged a formal protest with the Czech Republic on Friday over the visit of Taiwan’s top diplomat Lin Chia-lung, who is in Prague to promote a cultural campaign backed by Taipei.

“We call on the European side to uphold the one-China principle and stop 'Taiwan independence' separatists from visiting Europe,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a news conference in Beijing, according to remarks posted on US social media company X.

- Taiwan campaign in Europe

Lin arrived in the Czech Republic on Thursday, the first stop of his European tour, to promote the “Taiwan Culture in Europe 2025” campaign, according to state-run Focus Taiwan. His trip is expected to last more than 10 days.

Beijing described the Taiwanese diplomat as “a local official” of what it calls a province of China.

“China is against any form of official interaction between the Taiwan region and countries having diplomatic ties with China,” spokesman Lin said. He added: “Attempts to create 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan' will lead nowhere.”

- Strained China-Czech ties

Relations between Beijing and Prague have been under strain. In August, China announced it had ceased “all engagement” with Czech President Petr Pavel after he met the Dalai Lama in July.

China regards Taiwan as a breakaway province, while Taipei has rejected that claim and insisted on its independence since 1949.