Foreign Minister apologises for article on Sarkozy-Topolánek meeting

The Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg has apologised for a Czech magazine article published Thursday quoting a private meeting last month between Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. In a written statement, the minister said that he felt personally responsible, and said that someone at the foreign ministry had made a mistake. The Czech ambassador to France, who was at the meeting, has also suggested the article was misleading - saying he didn’t recognise its contents. The transcript from the meeting, revealing political horse-trading between the French president and the Czech prime minister, was published by the Czech weekly Reflex. The weekly says it received a recording of the talks from a reliable source and says it is standing by its story.