Taiwan's deputy legislative speaker leads delegation to Europe

Taipei, Sept. 6 (CNA) Taiwan's Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) is scheduled to lead a delegation of lawmakers on a European tour on Saturday, during which they will visit their counterparts in the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands.

On this European trip, the delegation is scheduled to pay visits to the European countries' parliaments and think tanks, as well as Taiwanese businesses abroad, to further deepen bilateral ties, according to a news release from Chiang's office.

The news release, however, did not specify which European stops will come first or when the delegation is expected to return to Taiwan.

Chiang is expected to meet with several European parliamentarians, including John McGuinness, deputy speaker of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish Parliament, and Richard Faulkner, member of the House of Lords in the United Kingdom.

Through parliamentary diplomacy visits, Chiang said, he hoped that Taiwan could maintain positive interactions, strengthen bilateral ties, and advance cooperation in trade, economics, and cultural exchange.

During the stop in the Czech Republic, Chiang will attend the opening of an exhibition featuring items from Taiwan's National Palace Museum's (NPM) treasured collection.

The "100 Treasures, 100 Stories: Treasures from the National Palace Museum" exhibition will run from Sept. 11 to Dec. 31 at the National Museum in Prague.

Since the NPM and the National Museum in Prague established sister ties in September 2022, exchanges between the two have grown increasingly close, and the upcoming exhibition is a clear example of that, Chiang said.

He praised the parties on both sides for making the exhibition possible, including the Czech parliament, which also offered its support.

The deputy speaker said plans for organizing the event were discussed when he and Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Wan Mei-ling (萬美玲) met with the head of the Czech parliamentary friendship group during his visit to the country in July last year.

According to the news release, the Taiwanese delegation includes Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔) of the main opposition party KMT, Chen Hsiu-pao (陳秀寳) of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, and Lin Yi-chun (林憶君) of the Taiwan People's Party.