CHINA THE SPY BALLOON SAGA remains the talk of town in D.C., and while U.S. President Joe Biden steered clear of the word itself, he did refer to the incident. “Make no mistake: As we made clear last week, if China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. And we did.” He added: “I’ve made clear with President Xi that we seek competition, not conflict.” HIDDEN MESSAGE ON TAIWAN: There’s also little doubt which self-ruling democratic island he was talking about, when he mentioned “modernizing our military to safeguard stability and deter aggression.” BUT BUT BUT: While diplomatic relations are at a low point, trade between the world’s two leading economies just hit an all-time high of $690 billion in 2022. Doug Palmer has more. RUSSIA/UKRAINE SOMETHING’S MISSING: Biden didn’t use the words “Russia” or “Moscow” at all during his speech. “Putin” became his go-to alternative. “I spoke from this chamber one year ago, just days after Vladimir Putin unleashed his brutal war against Ukraine,” Biden said. “A murderous assault, evoking images of the death and destruction Europe suffered in World War II.” HE LEADS: “Together, we did what America always does at our best. We led,” Biden told those gathering in Congress, including the Ukrainian ambassador to Washington. “We united NATO and built a global coalition. We stood against Putin’s aggression. We stood with the Ukrainian people.” EUROPE BIG TECH REASSURANCE: Before his speech, EU officials hoped to see Biden send a strong message on Big Tech (which they love regulating). And they got it. “It’s time to pass bipartisan legislation to stop Big Tech from collecting personal data on kids and teenagers online, ban targeted advertising to children and impose stricter limits on the personal data these companies collect on all of us,” Biden said. BUT NO BAND-AID ON THE SORE POINT: While there was little expectation in Europe that Biden would announce any changes to the Inflation Reduction Act, which is viewed as protectionist and threatening to industries across the Atlantic, the president somehow managed to deepen Europe’s mistrust over Bidenomics. Made in America, only: “Tonight, I’m also announcing new standards to require all construction materials used in federal infrastructure projects to be made in America,” he said. “And on my watch, American roads, American bridges and American highways will be made with American products.” LAST-MINUTE FRANCO-GERMAN LOBBYING: Germany’s economy minister, Robert Habeck, and his French counterpart, Bruno Le Maire, were in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday to lobby American officials. But they appear to have secured little guarantee from Washington. PRAGUE PURSUES NEW PATH A DECADE, SO LONG: The Czech Republic is bidding farewell to President Miloš Zeman, whose 10-year tenure marked by an unapologetic Russia- and China-friendly line will be coming to an end in March. He will be succeeded by Petr Pavel, a former NATO general determined to put an end to both of Zeman’s diplomatic preferences. WHY THIS MATTERS: Under the Czech constitution, the presidency is separate from the government led by the prime minister, meaning Zeman has been able to make statements in his official capacity that have often gone against the government's line. ALREADY: Pavel made a phone call to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen, becoming the first incoming EU head of state to do so. Beijing reacted furiously, blaming Pavel for trampling on a red line. THORNY PATH: Remember Lithuania? When it started befriending Taiwan, Beijing punished it with an all-out embargo, prompting the European Union to take China to the World Trade Organization. Beijing also downgraded its diplomatic relations with Vilnius. I SAT DOWN WITH FOREIGN MINISTER JAN LIPAVSKÝ to talk about Prague’s new direction. The following interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. Why does Taiwan matter to the Czech economy? Taiwan is a bigger investor than China in Czechia. And in the European comparison, we are the fourth largest Taiwanese investment in Europe. Given our size, it’s quite a major place. What do you think about President-elect Pavel’s call with Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen? It is in the interest of Czechia to strengthen relations with Taiwan and other democratic partners in the Indo-Pacific region. We have our own “one China” policy. Nothing has changed. ... Our assessment is that we are not breaching our “one China” policy. Is it time to diversify from Taiwan’s semiconductors? I wouldn’t say so. What we need to do is diversify from Chinese technologies. We need to be very, very well aware of that. Cooperation with Taiwan is definitely very much welcome. I wouldn't call for diversification from Taiwan; I would call for more cooperation on economic and scientific issues with Taiwan. Do you worry that as the U.S. focuses on China after the balloon saga, its attention on Europe would weaken? I would disagree with the assumption in your question. … The whole idea of NATO is built on the U.S. strategic guarantee for Europe, and the understanding in the U.S. that they need Europe. Even though the focus on China was mostly articulated during the Trump presidency — and yes, of course, [there were] concerns that the U.S. won't be present in Europe to help Europe with the Russia threat — that didn't turn out to be true.
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