• By Lin Chia-nan / Journalist

A Taiwanese delegation to Slovakia has signed seven memoranda of understanding with public and private entities, including a space technology pact that would bring Taiwan a project related to a blockchain application used by the European Space Agency, officials said on Friday. .

The 66-person delegation led by Minister of National Development Council Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) and Minister of Science and Technology Wu Tsung-tsong (吳 政 忠) concluded their three-day visit to Slovakia yesterday.

The two sides held a bilateral cooperation conference on Thursday to exchange views on technology, higher education and innovative research, the Ministry of Science and Technology said in a statement yesterday.

The Taiwanese delegation was received by the Vice-President of International Relations of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Zuzana Panczova, and other representatives of the Slovak Ministry of Education and the Slovak Research and Development Agency, a he said.

Since the ministry and the academy signed a scientific and technological cooperation agreement in 1996, they have funded more than 20 joint research projects over three years, the ministry said.

Wu witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on Friday by the Taiwan Space Industry Development Association, Slovak space company 3IPK and its partner company Decent, laying the groundwork for a trilateral cooperation framework, did he declare.

The association was represented by President Wu Jong-shinn (吳宗信), who is also the director general of the National Space Organization, he said.

The two Slovak companies visited in February the headquarters of the space organization in Hsinchu Science Park (新竹 科學 園區) with the representative of the Slovak Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, Martin Podstavek.

With the support of the office, 3IPK and Decent would deliver a proof of concept project in Taiwan based on a blockchain application used by the European Space Agency, the ministry said.

Decent is a start-up providing blockchain software as a service, while 3IPK is a space blockchain company which became a member of the Slovak Security and Defense Industry Association in 2019, a- he added.

Hsinchu Science Park Office Director General Wayne Wang (王永 壯) on Friday signed a memorandum of understanding with the Zilina University Research Center, represented by its director Filip Pastorek, he said. .

The research center, established in 2013, focuses on monitoring and evaluating transport infrastructure, advanced materials, smart architecture and renewable energy, the ministry said.

The cooperation of the two sides creates a win-win situation, as the center specializes in technical research, while the science park is strong in technical applications, the ministry said, adding that their initial cooperation would focus on sharing information. ‘experiences and staff exchanges.

A Slovak delegation planned to visit Taiwan in May, but the trip has been repeatedly postponed.

After its visit to Slovakia, the Taiwanese delegation turned yesterday to the Czech Republic, where it plans to stay until Tuesday, and will then visit Lithuania from Tuesday to Friday, the foreign ministry said.