【NCCU News Reporter Wu Yu-chieh】

Czech Senate President Miloš Vystrčil led a delegation to National Chengchi University on June 3 to attend the unveiling of the “NCCU Czech Classroom” and the signing of a Strategic Partnership Agreement between NCCU and Charles University.

NCCU and Charles University have maintained ties since 2006. Through the upgraded Strategic Partnership Agreement, the two universities will expand collaboration across multiple areas, including the UAAT-ICU, Supply Chain Resilience Center (SCRC), international cooperation networks, and Mandarin Chinese language education. The agreement also aims to expand the existing college-level student exchange program to the university level.

At the classroom entrance, NCCU students welcomed the guests with the Czech tradition of “bread and salt” (Chléb a sůl), symbolizing hospitality, abundance, and blessings.

Vystrčil also brought a lighthearted moment to the ceremony by revealing the contents of his own backpack on stage. “My backpack contains materials that I still need to continue learning from, so I cannot give it to you,” he joked, drawing laughter from the audience.

He then presented a symbolic aerial photograph of ‘Tajvan’, a Taiwan-shaped island on the Czech Republic’s Lipno Dam, as a gift to NCCU. He warmly invited NCCU faculty and students to visit, stating with emotion, “The real Taiwan and the Czech Taiwan should be together!”

Vystrčil thanked NCCU students for their interest in Europe and the Czech Republic, emphasizing that mutual language learning, cultural exchange, and deeper understanding can help both countries address shared challenges.

“When it comes to overcoming international difficulties and challenges, you, the higher education community and students, are doing much better than we politicians are. Politicians should learn from you. We are, and will remain throughout our lives, students who must continue learning,” he said.

NCCU President Tsai-Yen Li said the Czech Classroom symbolizes NCCU’s friendship and academic ties with the Czech Republic, and thanked the Czech government for donating more than 250 Czech books, board games, and teaching materials to enrich the university's library collection and learning resources..

Joyce Lee, Director General of the Department of International and Cross-strait Education at the Ministry of Education, said the signing turns Taiwan and the Czech Republic’s shared values of freedom, democracy, and human rights into concrete action. She added that the Ministry will continue supporting university cooperation in semiconductors and language education.

Karel Kouba, Vice-Rector of Charles University, said the new strategic partnerships with NCCU and National Taiwan University, respectively, will further deepen ongoing collaborations, expanding existing student exchanges into dual-degree programs and research collaboration. He emphasized that international higher education cooperation is key to strengthening democracy and creating more opportunities for the next generation.

National Taiwan University, which also signed a strategic partnership agreement with Charles University, was represented at the ceremony by Vice President for International Affairs Hsiao-Wei Yuan. Yuan noted that amid growing global challenges, the signing marks an important milestone for the three universities and reflects their shared commitment to international academic cooperation.

At the event’s close, Vystrčil took a selfie with faculty, students, and guests, marking a warm end to a new chapter in Taiwan-Czech higher education cooperation.