On the second stop of the tour to Central and Eastern Europe, Minister Kung, Ming-Hsin of the National Development Council (NDC) led a 28-member delegation representing government, industry, academia, and research institutes to Poland on July 28. In the presence of Minister Kung along with Maciej Małecki, Secretary of State at the Ministry of State Assets, and Grzegorz Piechowia, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, Chunghwa Telecom has inked two significant agreements with EXATEL, including the "Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Emerging Businesses" and "Taiwan-Poland Network Service Contract." The visit's agenda also included a cocktail reception organized by the Taipei Representative Office in Poland in the afternoon, attended by Polish officials including Ryszard Terlecki, Deputy Marshal of the Parliament of Poland; Barbara Bartus, Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee; and Waldeman Andzel, Chair of the Polish-Taiwanese Parliamentary Group. At this event, Minister Kung delivered a speech on "Building a Taiwan-Poland Democratic Supply Chain," underscoring the importance of collaboration between Taiwan and Poland.
Chunghwa Telecom and EXATEL have established connections in Central and Eastern Europe since the initiation of European Connectivity Project in 2021. Minister Kung's delegation marked the commencement of the project's second phase, signifying the commitment to deepening cooperation in the industry, academia, and research institutes and building a resilient and democratic supply chain. The MOU identifies five sectors for intensive collaboration—5G private network, smart city solutions, green data center, software-defined networking (SDN) and intelligent management, and optical communication security. The MOU aims to explore cooperation and investment prospect, demonstrating Chunghwa Telecom's ambition to accelerate its deployment in Europe.
In his remarks, Minister Kung acknowledged the robust friendship and shared democratic values between Taiwan and Poland, rooted in the latter's contribution of COVID-19 vaccines to Taiwan in 2021. Building on this foundation, Taiwan introduced the "European Connectivity Project," which includes Central and Eastern Europe Investment Fund and Financing Facility. Two years later, the Project is now in the second phase, putting Poland at its core and leading to the second visit to Poland.
Minister Kung emphasized the multi-faceted nature of collaboration between Taiwan and Poland, ranging from semiconductor, green and hydrogen energy to telecommunications. The MOU signing between Chunghwa Telecom and EXATEL on July 28, being facilitated by the Taiwania Capital and Chunghwa Investment, marked a milestone in strengthened alliance. Acknowledging Chunghwa Telecom as a leader in telecommunications not only in Taiwan but also in Asia, Minister Kung also commended EXATEL as Poland's best telecommunications company. This collaboration, he noted, serves as a cornerstone for future bilateral industrial cooperation.
Minister Kung stated that the collaboration between Chunghwa Telecom and EXATEL goes beyond industrial cooperation and lays the foundation for fostering an ecosystem. He highlighted the future potential for Taiwan and Poland to jointly engage in the supply of 5G Open RAN solutions. Through this strategic partnership, Chunghwa Telecom can leverage the opportunity to develop 5G applications and smart city solutions for European market, while EXATEL can tap into the Indo-Pacific market.
More importantly, the two sides can also cooperate on cybersecurity in the future, which will be the most critical link in digital transformation. In 2019, the U.S. and NATO convened a 5G Security Conference in Prague and put forward the Prague Proposal, in which Taiwan was included in the list of 5G Clean Network. Taiwan was also on the list of 5G Clean Network announced by the White House in 2020. As best partners, Taiwan and Poland can also cooperate to provide services in the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.
The delegation led by Minister Kung also attended a cocktail reception hosted by the Taipei Representative Office in Poland on the afternoon of July 28, attended by Ryszard Terlecki, Deputy Marshal of the Parliament of Poland; Barbara Bartus, Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee; and Waldeman Andzel, Chair of the Polish-Taiwanese Parliamentary Group. At this significant gathering, Minister Kung delivered a speech on "Building a Taiwan-Poland Democratic Supply Chain."
Minister Kung highlighted the significant milestone in the cooperation between Taiwan and Poland by noting his presence at the MOU signing ceremony between Chunghwa Telecom and EXATEL. Minister Kung stated that a Semiconductor Working Group was set up last year to promote cooperation in semiconductor, and a talent training working group has also been planned for nurturing talent in semiconductor and other sectors.
Minister Kung noted the establishment of Central and Eastern Europe Investment Fund of $200 million and Financing Facility of $1 billion in Taiwan in 2022. Some projects already had their applications approved, and it is hoped that more Polish enterprises can harness these resources for industrial cooperation.
Minister Kung also touched upon the frequent exchange of visits between Taiwan and Poland in the past two years. From the visit by the Polish-Taiwanese Parliamentary Group in December 2022 to subsequent visits by local governments and the Parliament in March 2023. Many collaboration projects were discussed during the visit of Deputy Chair Barbara Bartus of the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Minister Kung underscored the extensive potential for future collaboration in digital transformation worldwide, which goes beyond telecommunications and expands to include semiconductor, 5G O-RAN, AI applications, and vertical solutions. The formation of a talent training working group, set up by both countries, will further catalyze these joint initiatives. There is also much room for cooperation in energy transition, such as hydrogen, for which an MOU has been signed, as well as cooperation on vehicle electrification and batteries.
Minister Kung also highlighted the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine by expressing Taiwan's willingness to provide humanitarian aid via Poland and assist in the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine with Poland. Central and Eastern European countries are the most important partners for Taiwan in supply chain restructuring, digital and net-zero transformation, and reconstruction of Ukraine.
Minister Kung affirmed the collaborative journey undertaken thus far and underscored the steadfast commitment to future cooperation between Taiwan and Poland.
For more details, please contact:
Connie Chang, Director General of the Department of Overall Planning
0910-213-556