• President Pavel to speak on populism and Ukraine at Munich Security Conference
    02/12/2026

    President Petr Pavel will take part in the Munich Security Conference on Friday and Saturday, speaking in the main programme on populism and joining a panel discussion on Ukraine. He is also set to hold bilateral meetings and attend a literary evening organised as a prelude to the Frankfurt Book Fair, the President’s Office said on Thursday.

    The 62nd Munich Security Conference opens on Friday and runs through Sunday. This year’s talks will focus on the gradual erosion of the rules-based global order and the weakening of long-standing alliances, including relations between Europe and the United States.

    Dozens of heads of state and government are expected to attend, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The US delegation will be led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Czechia will also be represented by Foreign Minister Petr Macinka and Defence Minister Jaromír Zůna.
    Author: Ruth Fraňková

  • Pavel Zeman appointed Czech European Prosecutor
    02/12/2026

    Former Supreme State Prosecutor Pavel Zeman has been appointed as the Czech Republic’s new European Prosecutor at the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), which investigates the misuse of European Union funds.

    Zeman said he intends to build on the work of his predecessor, Petr Klement, who he described as having performed the role “very successfully.” He begins a six-year term based at the EPPO headquarters in Luxembourg in July.

    The EPPO has the authority to investigate and prosecute criminal offences affecting the EU’s financial interests and to bring perpetrators before court.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Babiš government plans to renew special long-term residency for Ukrainian refugees
    02/12/2026

    The coalition government of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš says it wants to follow up on the previous cabinet of Petr Fiala (Civic Democrats) in maintaining special long-term residence permit for Ukrainian refugees.

    The scheme is intended for self-sufficient and economically active refugees who meet strict eligibility criteria. Those granted the status are assured five years of residence in the Czech Republic and may subsequently apply for permanent residency.

    The permit was introduced under Fiala’s government, with approximately 16,000 people obtaining it last year. Andrej Babiš’s planned cabinet now aims to relaunch the program under similar conditions.

    According to Interior Ministry statistics, more than 398,000 Ukrainian refugees are currently living in the Czech Republic. The vast majority hold temporary protection status, which is extended annually under a European Union framework. However, self-supporting refugees have been able to apply for the special long-term residence permit, offering greater stability and a path toward permanent settlement.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czech PM backs Macron’s ‘Buy European’ plan for EU public contracts
    02/12/2026

    Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš is in favour of French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to give preference to European manufacturers in public procurement across the European Union. Mr. Babiš expressed support for the plan after nearly two hours of talks with President Macron in Paris.

    The French president has repeatedly promoted the plan, known as “buy European,” in recent days ahead of Thursday’s informal EU summit on the bloc’s competitiveness.

    However, several countries have voiced concerns about the proposal. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are among those who have expressed reservations.

    Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Sweden have taken a firmer stance. In a joint statement, they warned that the plan could lead to an outflow of investment from the EU.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czech aircraft maker BRM Aero to deliver over 20 planes to South Korea
    02/11/2026

    Czech aircraft manufacturer BRM Aero, based in Kunovice in the Uherské Hradiště region, will deliver more than 20 of its Bristell B23-915 IFR two-seat aircraft and several simulators to South Korea,  Hospodářské noviny (HN) reported on Wednesday.

    The South Korean military will use the aircraft for basic pilot training. Details of the contract were published by the ultralight aircraft producer on its website. The company did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • NATO official urges more contributions to Czech-led munitions initiative for Ukraine

    02/11/2026

    The Czech-led initiative to supply artillery ammunition to Ukraine aims to secure munitions worth €5 billion (over CZK 121 billion) for Kyiv, but has so far received pledges totaling only €1.4 billion, a senior unnamed NATO military official told journalists in Brussels on Wednesday.

    The official noted that the Czech government has confirmed it will continue to coordinate the initiative and called on allies to keep contributing.

    Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and other representatives of the Czech governing coalition had initially said they would scrap the initiative, but eventually reversed the decision, on a compromise  that Prague would stop contributing to it financially.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Police press charges against gang that smuggled cocaine in cakes
    02/11/2026

    Police have filed charges against seven foreign nationals and one Czech citizen for smuggling more than 30 kilograms of cocaine from Germany to the Czech Republic. The drugs were hidden inside cakes transported by couriers on a scheduled bus from Berlin to Prague’s Florenc bus station, according to a press release from the National Drug Headquarters (NPC).

    The suspects paid more than CZK 600,000 for each one-kilogram brick of cocaine and then sold it in Prague for several hundred thousand crowns more, the report said.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Weather forecast
    02/11/2026

    Thursday should be overcast with rain showers and daytime temperatures between 5 and 10 degrees Celsius.

  • Czech Philharmonic led by guest conductor Jakub Hrůša to honor Jiří Bělohlávek
    02/11/2026

    The Czech Philharmonic, led by guest conductor Jakub Hrůša, will honor former chief conductor Jiří Bělohlávek at a concert in Prague’s Rudolfinum on Wednesday evening.

    Bělohlávek, who died in 2017, would have turned 80 this February.

    The program will feature two works by Josef Suk: the concert overture “A Winter’s Evening Tale” and the suite from the play “Radúz and Mahulena.” Hrůša has long focused on Suk’s music and regularly performs it in the Czech Republic and abroad.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Constitutional Court upholds criminal offence of “unauthorized activity for a foreign power”
    02/11/2026

    The offence of “unauthorized activity for a foreign power” will remain part of the Criminal Code. The Constitutional Court on Wednesday rejected a petition by a group of senators seeking to annul the provision.

    The petition against it was signed by 24 senators, who argued that the wording is vague, broadly formulated and was inserted into the Criminal Code as an unconstitutional legislative rider.

    The Court ruled that if democracy and the values on which it stands are attacked the democratic system must have the right to defend itself against such attacks. However, it stressed that the legislation must not restrict freedom of expression.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

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