Klaus - Prague ready to talk but not negotiate about Sudeten German issue

President Vaclav Klaus who is on a one day visit to neighbouring Austria has said the Czech Republic is willing to talk but not to negotiate about the issue of the Sudeten Germans' expulsion after the Second World War. Mr Klaus added that for his part, he said all in a statement to mark the March anniversary of the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia. At a joint press conference with Mr Klaus, the Austrian President Thomas Klestil said Austria felt the Sudeten German question had not yet been solved "in a satisfactory way". In recent years Austria has been pressing for a "gesture" by Prague over the Sudeten Germans issue. The Austrian right-wing Freedom Party also demanded formal abolition of the post-war Benes Decrees legitimising the expulsion, threatening that the Czechs would otherwise be barred from EU membership.

Since becoming President in succession to Vaclav Havel in early March, Mr Klaus has toured the Czech Republic's neighbouring countries to stress the importance of good neighbourly relations. Austria is his fourth stop after visits to Slovakia, Poland and Germany.