The guests had the possibility to taste Czech wines by Lahofer winery and beer by Pilsner Urquell.

The Embassy would like to thank the following companies for their support: Škoda, Hunat Glass, Petrof Pianos, and SKLO (exclusive importer of Květná 1794).

Czech National Day Reception 2022

Below is the the Ambassador Michaela Froňková's welcome speech:

"Your Excellency Tan Kiat How, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information and Ministry of Development, Your Excellency Lim Biow ČChuan, Member of Parliament for Montbatten and Your Excellency Carrie Tan, Member of Parliament for Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency, excellenceis, distinguished guests and friends, welcome to the celebration of the first National Day reception of the Czech Republic organized by our Embassy in Singapore after long 13 years of absence of the Czech diplomatic mission here.

To properly celebrate the return of the Czech Embassy, we borrowed the slogan from the much-loved Formula 1 from you, Singapore, and tweaked it just a little, so now you can see it reads - the Czech Republic in Singapore is back on track! And we would like our comeback to be as successful as the recent successful return here after two years of Formula 1.

We have already recorded some of our achievements, kicked off by the historically first ever participation of the Czech Republic represented by the Deputy Minister of Defence at the renowned Shangri-la Dialogue in June this year. Last Thursday we co-organised, again the historically first ever, joint seminar with CyberSecurity Agency of Singapore, the European Union and ESIWA project, where we discussed a pertinent topic of Responsible State Behaviour in Cyberspace. Taking place as a part of the globally eminent Singapore International CyberWeek, it was also an opportunity for an official visit of the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was accompanied by a delegation of experts, academics and business people, who showcased the unique Czech solutions at the GovWare exhibition. We are also very much looking forward to the visit of the Speaker of the Parliament, H. E. Tan ČChuan-TŽJin, next spring, who was invited by his Czech counterpart, the Speaker Mrs. Pekarova Adamová.

But even the 13-year period when diplomatic relations between the Czech Republic and Singapore were not covered residentially, did not mean that we forgot about each other. Rather, it was quite the opposite. In May 2017, former President of Singapore, Tony Tan Keng Yam (Jem), paid a state visit to the Czech Republic. In January 2019, then Prime Minister of the Czech Republic was received in Singapore by President Halimah Yacob and held fruitful talks with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. And that same year in December 2019, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and his Czech counterpart met on the side-lines of the ASEM meeting in Madrid, and it was there that they agreed on the upcoming return of our Embassy in Singapore.

I cannot stress enough that all these important developments in our bilateral relations have taken place with the significant assistance and contribution of the then Honorary Consul of the Czech Republic in Singapore, Mr. Kwee Liong SÍeen, and the Non-Resident Ambassador to the Czech Republic, H.E. Mr. Tan Soo Khoon. For these years of excellent work, we are very grateful to them. 

Both of them were also very helpful to our fellow citizens who could thus cope in the absence of the resident Embassy. And we thank them all very much for their patience as they waited for its re-opening. Our thanks also go to the representatives of major Czech companies that did not cease to showcase their quality products. Especially Škoda Auto, Hunat Glass, Petrof and Sklo should be highlighted. And it is they who support us this evening.

At this point, allow me very briefly introduce you to what the Czech language sounds like, because I would like to greet the Czech community with two sentences in Czech.

At the end of my speech, I cannot forget to mention the period from July to December this year, when the Czech Republic holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. I probably won´t surprise anyone by saying that we are facing very serious crises at this time, including the worst possible one, war. And the only way to resolve them is through mutual assistance and the joint commitment of all of us. For I am convinced that it is through the common endeavour of all of us that the people can live in security, peace, health and tranquillity in the countries and homes that are their own. And in this common endeavour Singapore is not only a reliable partner, but also an example in its commitment to protect, respect and defend the values of international law and also what’s increasingly important, in its responsible approach to protecting the health of our planet. And for all this, my great thanks go to this country.

Now I would like to invite H.E. Mr. Minister to the podium to hear the national anthem of the Republic of Singapore together. Followed by the national anthem, please join us in raising a toast to Her Excellency President Halimah Yacob."