• 11/22/2023

    Children's motivation to learn a second foreign language is lower than for their first foreign language, according to the findings of the Czech School Inspectorate. Most primary and secondary school pupils recognise the usefulness of learning another foreign language, but only a minority of them would choose to study one if they did not have to. The exception is English, which 76 percent of primary school students and 92 percent of secondary school students would choose to study, even if they didn't have to. However, most students study English as their first foreign language.

    Three-fifths of the surveyed foreign language teachers at primary schools agree with the proposal to make second foreign languages a non-compulsory subject.

    Author: Anna Fodor
  • 11/22/2023

    Thursday should be overcast but dry, with daytime temperatures hovering around 6 degrees Celsius.

    Author: Anna Fodor
  • 11/22/2023

    Chair of the NATO Military Committee Rob Bauer met with Karel Řehka, Chief of the Czech Army General Staff, in Prague on Wednesday to discuss current threats to the security of the alliance. Mr Bauer said at a press conference after the meeting that Ukraine needs to be supported for as long as it takes to win, as if Russia succeeds in its war against Ukraine, it would not be the end of uncertainty in Europe, but the beginning of even more uncertainty. He praised Czechia's support for Ukraine in the form of military equipment supplies, training of Ukrainian soldiers and welcoming of refugees.

    Karel Řehka said that Bauer's visit to Czechia is an important event and an opportunity to bring a Czech perspective. In addition to Řehka, the chair of the NATO Military Committee is also meeting with Deputy Defence Minister Daniel Blažkovec and President Petr Pavel.

    Author: Anna Fodor
  • 11/22/2023

    The Ministry of Industry and Trade is planning to offer subsidies to private companies for the purchase of electric cars, news site E15 reports. The program, called "Electromobility Guarantee", is being financed by EU funds and is intended to increase electric car sales in Czechia, which are among the lowest in Europe. CZK 1.65 billion has been earmarked for financial support for business owners to invest in electric cars, while the remaining CZK 300 million is reserved for the construction of charging stations.

    Author: Anna Fodor
  • 11/22/2023

    President Petr Pavel has signed off on the government's austerity package, the final step required for it to be passed into law, the Office of the President announced on its website. President Pavel announced his decision to sign the bill earlier on Wednesday. In a video posted on social media site X, he said that he had decided to approve it because of the unsustainable growth rate of Czechia's national debt, adding that if something wasn't done about the state's budget deficit, the country would be passing on the debt to its children and grandchildren.

    He met with three members of the opposition ANO party on Tuesday, who urged him not to approve the bill, which the opposition have fiercely contested from the outset. ANO politician and former finance minister Alena Schillerová said after the meeting that if the president approves the measures, then they will almost certainly take the matter to the Constitutional Court.

    Author: Anna Fodor
  • 11/22/2023

    Tens of thousands of employees from 31 unions are expected to join Monday’s strike against the government’s policies organized by the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions. The strike which will bring to a halt production in dozens of companies, including Skoda Auto, is directed against the government’s austerity package, the expected rise of energy costs and proposed changes to the pension system.

    The march will lead from Prague’s Rudolfinum to Malostranské náměstí, where a rally will take place starting at 1pm. Traffic could be disrupted in parts of southern Bohemia from midnight to noon in connection with the strike. Education unions have called a strike in kindergartens, primary and secondary schools around the country and many health sector employees are also expected to attend the protest.

  • 11/22/2023

    President Petr Pavel hosted a summit of the Visegrad Group (V4) at Prague Castle on Wednesday. The heads of state of Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Czechia discussed the priorities and projects of the Visegrad Fund, multilateral cooperation and foreign policy issues. Czechia currently holds the rotating V4 presidency.

    Observers note that the stands of the four countries have diverged significantly on some foreign policy issues, such as continued support for Ukraine. The Office of the President emphasized that the Czech Republic sees the V4 as a Central European platform for fostering good neighbourly relations. “V4 cooperation should focus on bringing concrete benefits for the citizens of the four countries,” it said in a statement.

  • 11/21/2023

    The European Union is discussing a Czech proposal for possible restrictions on movement within the Schengen space for Russian diplomats. The Czech Republic has proposed that Russian diplomats be issued visas and residence permits that only allow travel within their host country and not the rest of the Schengen area on the argument that Russian agents work undercover as diplomats and evade monitoring thanks to the EU’s borderless zone. Prague also proposed only accepting biometric passports, which are more difficult to forge.

    Czech Foreign Ministry spokesman Daniel Drake said the ministry would not disclose further details since talks on the proposal are still underway.

    According to the Financial Times, Prague last week circulated a paper with the proposal as part of negotiations on the EU’s 12th package of sanctions against Moscow, which member states still need to approve.

  • 11/21/2023

    Wednesday should be partly cloudy to overcast with snow in places and day temperatures between -1 and 3 degrees Celsius.

  • 11/21/2023

    Pařížská Street in Prague has once again been ranked among the 20 most expensive shopping streets in the world in terms of rents, according to data from Cushman & Wakefield. The highest annual rent in Pařížská Street is 2,700 euros (66,100 crowns) per square meter, which is the highest price in Europe and the 11th highest in the world. Czechia is the only Central and Eastern European country to have a street ranked among the top 20 most expensive in the world.

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