News

The Czech U-18 national hockey team will - for the first time in its history - play for gold at the World Championships. The squad faces the United States on Sunday evening. The Czech team fought hard in Finland to reach the final, edging Russia as well as defending champions Canada, to advance. Canada faces Sweden in the bronze medal match.

The Communist Party and the Social Democrats are among the few parties planning traditional May 1st celebrations to mark International Workers’ Day, ČTK reports. According to the news agency, the Communists will hold a public meeting at the Výstaviště fair grounds, where they have staged events over the last few years instead of Letná Park. The Social Democrats will lay a wreath marking the holiday on April 30 at Střelecký ostrov (island) - a site in Prague where the workers’ holiday was first marked in 1890. Most parties are using May 1st as an opportunity to highlight candidates and issues ahead of the elections to the European Parliament later in the month. May 1 will mark ten years since the Czech Republic joined the European Union.

American Vice President Joe Biden on Saturday spoke to the premiers of the Czech Republic and Hungary about developments in Ukraine, assuring them of the United States’ commitment to collective defense under NATO’s Article 5, which stipulates that an attack against one member of the alliance is an attack against all. The Czech News Agency reported that Mr Biden spoke for 45 minutes over the phone with Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka, discussing new sanctions against Russia for failing to withdraw troops on Ukraine’s border and for failing to de-escalate tension in the area as agreed in talks in Geneva. The two also discussed the situation of OSCE observers - including a Czech national - being held captive by pro-Russian separatists. The Czech Foreign and Defence Ministries are working with partners to try and secure the observers’ release. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999; Article 5 was first invoked in 2001 after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States.

Prague hockey club Lev Praha lost 2:1 on Friday against Magnitogorsk in the KHL’s Gagarin Cup finals. The team was beaten in overtime – its second straight loss – putting Magnitogorsk a win away from the cup. The club leads the best-of-seven series 3:2. The next match takes place in Prague on Monday; Lev will have to win to force a deciding Game 7 back in Russia. No non-Russian team has ever won the Gagarin Cup.