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The overall incidence of acute respiratory infections in Czechia has remained stable over the past week, with 1,575 cases per 100,000 people, according to the National Institute of Public Health (SZÚ). However, flu cases, especially among children, increased by 50%. European countries are on the brink of a flu epidemic, with more cases expected in the coming weeks. Vaccination remains the most effective protection, with over 700,000 Czechs vaccinated against the flu since September, slightly more than last year. Health officials urge people feeling unwell to stay home during holiday visits to protect vulnerable relatives.

The DHL company listed the transport of the James Bond exhibition "Bond in Motion" from Prague to Vienna as one of its five most curious jobs of the year. In August, the company moved over 163 props related to the famous 007 agent, including 27 cars, eight motorcycles, costumes, parachutes, and Bond's driver's license. The transport required 22 trucs. A standout item was the Aston Martin DB5, featured in eight Bond films from "Goldfinger" (1964) to "No Time to Die" (2021). Among DHL’s other unusual jobs this year was the relocation of 163 endangered vultures in South Africa.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala has clearly distanced himself from Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s surprise visit to Moscow on Sunday for talks with President Putin. In a statement for the ctk news agency Prime Minister Fiala said that in view of this Slovak foreign policy move, the Czech government’s decision to suspend intergovernmental consultations between the Czech Republic and Slovakia had been prudent.

“Our foreign policy is heading in the opposite direction, which is why we have taken a number of measures over the past two years to wean Czechia off Russian crude oil and gas deliveries," Fiala wrote to the ctk news agency.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said the Czech government was seeking independence from Russian energy supplies "so that we do not have to grovel before a mass murderer".

Although it is now 20 years since the first Pendolino high-speed train was introduced in the Czech Republic, there is still no track in the country where it can drive at its maximum speed of 230 kilometres per hour, Zdeněk Malkovský, head of the Research Institute of Rail Vehicles told the ctk news agency. According to Malkovský, the introduction of the Pendolino in 2004 by the state carrier Czech Railways offered passengers higher quality services boosting public interest in rail transport in the Czech Republic. The lifetime of the Pendolino is 40 years, so they will probably not be scrapped for another 20 years, Malkovský said.