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05/01/2024
German President Frank Walter Steinmeier also attended celebrations marking 20 years of Czech membership in the EU. Addressing a conference on the EU in Prague, President Steinmeier said that the anniversary of the “Big Bang” expansion in which ten countries from Central and Eastern Europe joined the alliance is an opportunity to reflect on what the Union has achieved, what is at risk and what needs to be done for a common secure future. He said Russia's aggression had drawn the EU member states closer and they must pull together to avert the security threat presented by the Putin regime.
President Steinmeier held talks in Prague with President Petr Pavel and Prime Minister Petr Fiala. They discussed the upcoming European elections, support for Ukraine, global security and energy issues, business and trade and cross-border cooperation. The German president noted that “Czech-German relations have never been better”.
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05/01/2024
Czechia is marking 20 years since the country’s accession to the EU. Speaking at a gala concert in Prague’s Rudolfinum on Tuesday evening, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU had made the Czech Republic stronger and Czechia had in turn strengthened the EU. The EC chief thanked the Czech Republic for its contribution in shaping the EU, and for being an active and reliable member of the alliance.
“Václav Havel has said: 'Work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed. ' In these years, I have seen the Czech people put these words into action: You have been one of Ukraine's staunchest supporters – not because it was easy, but because it was right. You are hosting the most Ukrainian refugees per capita – not because it is easy, but because it is right. Under the Czech Presidency's leadership, we broke free from Russia's energy blackmail. And it certainly was not easy, but it was right,” the EC chief said.
Tuesday's concert at the Rudolfinum, performed by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of its chief conductor Semyon Byčkov, included Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, the official anthem of the European Union.
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04/30/2024
Wednesday should be clear and dry with day temperatures between 21 and 25 degrees Celsius.
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04/30/2024
Digitalisation will shake up the labour market in the next seven to eight years, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Marian Jurečka told reporters. Jurecka said he expects that 300, 000 jobs will be lost because of digitization and another million positions will undergo a significant change requiring requalification. In the next 18 months the Labour Ministry wants up to 130,000 people to upgrade their competences in digital technologies. The Labour Ministry and the Labour Office have earmarked 5 billion crowns to be invested in human capital and retraining and digital education in the coming years.
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04/30/2024
Prague Castle is hosting an international conference on 20 years of Czech membership in the EU. Addressing the gathering, Prime Minister Petr Fiala said that in the past two decades the EU had significantly contributed to Czechia’s security and prosperity and the country had shown itself to be a reliable member, ready to take on its share of responsibility and defend European values. Mr. Fiala also spoke of the need to help Ukraine defend its sovereignty and expressed support for EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, Moldova and Ukraine, which he said would become an essential security guarantee in the years to come.
Addressing the gathering, President Petr Pavel said Czechia should adopt the euro in order to become a first-league player in Europe. Pavel indirectly criticized the government’s unwillingness to set a date for euro adoption, saying that only those countries that have not yet adopted the currency are dissatisfied with the euro.
In a video message to participants, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked Czechia for actively helping Ukraine to defend itself against Russian aggression and expressed the hope that his country would one day be able to join the alliance. Europe can only be strong if no one is left out in the cold, he said.
The 20th anniversary of the country’s accession to the EU will also be marked by a gala concert at the Rudolfinum performed by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. The Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic is also planning an event on 4 April to mark the anniversary and to evaluate EU membership from a business perspective.
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04/30/2024
The government has approved changes to the pension system proposed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The proposal envisages a gradual increase in the retirement age linked to a higher life expectancy, a different basis for calculating old-age pensions, a lower indexation of pensions and a minimum pension amounting to 20 percent of the average wage. Most of the changes would affect people born after 1966. The present retirement age is 65 for both men and women.
According to Labour Minister Marian Jurečka the reform is necessary for the sustainability of the pension system. However the opposition ANO party is critical of the planned changes and has said that if it wins the 2025 general elections and gets to form a government it will abolish them. Trade unions and associations of disabled and senior citizens are also opposed to the reform.
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04/30/2024
A fire warning for the entire country in the coming days, issued in connection with the warm, dry and windy weather, has led to a ban in Prague on lighting fires in high-risk places such as parks, gardens and woodland areas until midnight Thursday. The ban is intended to limit the traditional bonfires on Walpurgis or witch burning night, on Tuesday, April 30. Large events taking place under the supervision of firefighters can go ahead.
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04/30/2024
Grammy-winning American singer Billie Eilish will perform in the Czech Republic in June of next year within her European tour to promote her highly anticipated third studio album HIT ME HARD AND SOFT, set for release on May 17. Eilish is scheduled to appear at Prague’s 02 Arena, which she sold out in 2019, on 1 June 2025. According to Ondřej Pojzl from the LiveNation production agency, tickets will go on sale on 3 May.
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04/30/2024
Czechia will continue to seek compensation from Russia through diplomatic channels for the ammunition depot explosions in Vrbětice in 2014, Interior Minister Vít Rakušan said at a press briefing on Monday. The explosions killed two people and caused close to a billion crowns in damages. Martin Smolek, of the Foreign Ministry's legal and consular section, said that while there was no hope of getting Russia to take responsibility for the attack at present, the situation could change in the future.
Minister Rakušan said the police have proof that the Vrbětice explosions were carried out by members of the Russian military intelligence agency GRU, whose motive was to prevent the delivery of weapons to the places where the Russians were conducting operations.
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04/29/2024
Czech Health Minister Vlastimil Válek wants to introduce a new excise tax on soft drinks before the next parliamentary elections. According to the minister, the popular soft drinks, which are high in sugar, are having a negative impact on the health of the population, including a higher incidence of obesity among the young. The National Economic Council of the Government supports the idea and the minister says he is confident the proposed tax will be approved by both chambers of Parliament. It would make soft drinks more expensive by several crowns, depending on the amount of sugar they contain.
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