Czech prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka makes first Polish visit

Czech prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka made his first trip as premier to Poland on Wednesday. Discussions with Polish counterpart Donald Tusk focused on the situation in Ukraine and improved road and gas connections between the Czech Republic and Poland. Prime ministers agreed that infringements on the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine were unacceptable. Environment, industry and trade, and transport ministers from the neighbouring countries will also hold parallel talks. Poland has been one of the most active EU countries in the current Ukrainian crisis. One of Sobotka’s first visits in Warsaw was to the memorial of Ryszard Siewiec, the Pole who set fire to himself to protest the 1968 occupation of Czechoslovakia. A Polish government delegation has been invited to the Czech Republic in the autumn.