Daily news summary

Czech foreign minister meets with Mike Pompeo

Czech Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček, who is on a working visit to the United States, on Friday met for talks with his US counterpart,Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The two officials discussed cyber-security, the situation in Syria and Afghanistan and the US administration’s stated intention to impose tariffs on European car-makers.

Minister Petříček tweeted shortly after the meeting that the two sides had praised the state of bilateral relations and cooperation in third countries. He said he had taken a strong stand against tariffs and a possible trade war between Europe and the US, expressing the hope that this scenario could be averted in the coming weeks and months.

The Czech foreign minister said the US had welcomed the fact that the Czech Republic took cyber-security and the warnings regarding the Chinese company Huawei seriously.

He said he had extended an invitation for US Secretary of State Pompeo to visit the Czech Republic.

President briefed about work of police force

Interior Minister Jan Hamáček and Police President Jan Švejdar met with President Miloš Zeman at Lány Chateau on Saturday to outline the priorities of the force.

They discussed the need to fight economic crime, drugs related crime and improve road safety.

The president expressed appreciation of the work of the force and rising public trust in the police.

Jan Švejdar took up the post in December of last year.

ANO would win general elections

The ANO party of the ruling coalition would win general elections, if they were held today, according to a survey conducted by the CVVM agency.

ANO would get 30 percent of the vote, followed by the opposition Pirate Party and the Civic Democrats which would both get 15 percent.

The Social Democrats would come fourth with 11 percent, just ahead of the Communist Party which would get 10 percent.

The only other parties which stand a chance of crossing the five percent threshold needed to win seats in the lower house are the Christian Democrats, the Freedom and Direct Democracy Party and the Mayors and Independents.

Travelling exhibition recalls self-immolation of Jan Zajíc

A travelling exhibition on the life and legacy of Jan Zajíc, who set himself on fire to protest against growing public apathy to the Soviet led-invasion in 1968, opened in his home town of Vítkov on Friday.

Zajíc set himself on fire in a passage off Wenceslas Square on February 25th 1969, close to the place where student Jan Palach made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to rouse the nation a month earlier.

Zajíc, who felt that further protest actions were needed, set himself on fire on the 21st anniversary of the communist putsch in 1948.

The exhibition of texts and photographs reflecting his life and legacy will travel around the country in the coming months.

Young Czech women surpass men in education

Young Czech women surpass men in education, according to data released by the Czech Statistics Office.

Over 40 percent of young women have a university degree, which is 13 percent more than their male contemporaries.

More women than men also speak two or more foreign languages, according to a survey conducted between 2010 and 2017.

Although an increasing number of women are overqualified for their jobs, they make on average 25 percent less than men.

Kvitová succumbs to Bencic in Dubai

Petra Kvitová failed to secure a second title in Dubai on Saturday, losing 3:6, 6:1, 2:6 to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic in the final.

Kvitová had won all six sets she'd played previously against Bencic and had won seven of her last eight finals, but she could not overcome the Swiss' aggressive game.

The two-time Wimbledon winner dropped to 17-4 on the season.

Weather forecast

Sunday should be partly cloudy, with rain in places, and day temperatures between 2 and 6 degrees Celsius.