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The talks between the European Commission and the Czech Republic, which resulted in Brussels' tacit approval of the use of milk from the herd in which a BSE- infected cow is found, were only preliminary and did not produce any formal agreement, the European Commission said on Thursday. It stressed that a possible change in the procedures for slaughtering of animals that might have contracted mad cow disease first has to be proposed by the European Commission College and then approved by member states. On Tuesday the Agriculture Ministry announced that Czech farmers who own an infected cow will not have to kill all animals of the same age in the herd. Instead, the cows will continue to produce milk and will be put down gradually.

The London-based human rights organisation Amnesty International has criticised the Czech Republic for ill treatment of its Roma minority and cases of degrading treatment of patients in mental hospitals. According to the Amnesty International annual report, released on Wednesday, the cases of ill-treatment of Romanies are not sufficiently investigated and their perpetrators are not sufficiently punished. The report also notes that Roma are affected by high unemployment and Romany children continue to be overrepresented in schools for children with learning difficulties. Amnesty International also points out that "cage beds" are still used in psychiatric hospitals to restrain patients. The organisation considers the use of cage beds in Czech mental institutions to be cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, violating international law and professional practice.

The Czech cabinet has approved draft legislation which abolishes thirteenth and fourteenth month salaries, a form of bonus given to civil servants in the summer and at the end of the year. Instead, the draft proposes to replace the two extra salaries with only 20% of one monthly wage, divided among the twelve salaries in the year. The cabinet also decided to deprive judges, MPs, ministers, and state representatives, of their fourteenth month salary as early as this year. Both draft laws are yet to be approved by parliament and signed by the president. Civil service unions, who oppose the draft, have said they are confident the proposed legislation would not make it through parliament.

The Czech National Security Council met on Tuesday to prepare for the upcoming NATO summit in Istanbul, Turkey. Following the meeting, Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla said the Czech Republic would not support any proposals for NATO's engagement in Iraq. This country is, however, willing to participate in peace-keeping missions in the Middle East. In February, Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda offered to act as a mediator to solve conflict on the borders between Lebanon, Syria, and Israel. According to Czech President Vaclav Klaus, who will be leading the Czech delegation to Istanbul, the fact that the next summit will be held in Turkey shows that NATO hopes to have a more clearly defined role in the Middle East. The Security Council on Tuesday also approved the country's military strategy but was not able to agree on a common Czech standpoint on European security and defence policy.