• Report on extremism highlights pro-Kremlin propaganda and conspiracy theories
    05/05/2023

    Some right-wing extremist groups in Czechia have become part of a community aligned with pro-Kremlin propaganda, according to the Interior Ministry’s 2022 report on extremism. The report says that in recent years the extremist scene has been fueled by topics such as price increases, the energy and migration crises, and the war in Ukraine. The ministry also points to the emergence of an anti-establishment group of people who distrust the state and spread conspiracy theories and disinformation.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • President Pavel appoints two new ministers to office
    05/04/2023

    President Petr Pavel appointed two new ministers to the Fiala cabinet on Thursday. Mikuláš Bek, who served as minister for European affairs, has taken over the education portfolio and Martin Dvořák, who served as deputy foreign minister, is now the minister for European affairs. The government shake up was triggered by the fact that Vladimír Balaš resigned as education minister due to health problems.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Weather forecast
    05/04/2023

    Friday should be partly cloudy and mostly dry around the country with day temperatures between 18 and 22 degrees Celsius.

  • Monument to Czech airmen to be unveiled in The Netherlands
    05/04/2023

    A monument will be unveiled on Thursday to six Czechoslovak RAF airmen shot down over the Dutch municipality of Nieuwe Niedorp on June 23, 1941. All but one of the crew members downed survived and he later died in captivity. The RAF Vickers Wellington was recovered in 2021. Thursday's unveiling ceremony will be attended by local officials, Czech representatives and families of the crew.

    More than 5,500 airplanes were lost in the Netherlands during the Second World War. Thirty to fifty of these airplane wrecks have not been recovered. The National Airplane Recovery Program was launched in 2019.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • PM and central bank head blaming each other for high inflation
    05/04/2023

    The Fiala administration and the Czech National Bank are at loggerheads over who is to blame for  Czechia’s two-digit inflation. Announcing a revised macroeconomic forecast 2023, with a GDP growth of 0.5 percent and an average inflation of 11.2 percent, the central bank governor, Ales Michl, called for a responsible fiscal policy that would lower inflation. Prime Minister Fiala countered that it is primarily the task of the Czech National Bank to keep a rein on inflation. Michl is known for his stance against interest rate increases.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czechia second on crony capitalism index
    05/04/2023

    Czechia is second on the crony capitalism index compiled by The Economist. The country is second to Russia, where billionaires' wealth derived from close friendships with the state accounts for 19 per cent of gross domestic product. The Czech share of crony capitalism wealth is over 15 percent of GDP. Malaysia, Singapore and Mexico are also in the top five.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czechia signs up to US space exploration accords
    05/04/2023

    Czechia has joined the Artemis Accords, an initiative created by NASA and the US State Department focused on the exploration of the Moon, Mars and other space bodies. The Czech foreign minister, Jan Lipavský, signed the accords in the presence of NASA Administrator Bill Nelson in Washington on Wednesday. Czechia is the 24th country to join.

    Czech officials said it was a step towards strengthening cooperation with the US and other close partners on space exploration missions.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Ukraine war dominates Journalism Prize
    05/04/2023

    This year’s Journalism Prize, one of Czechia’s main events of its kind, was dominated by the war in Ukraine. The prize for best written interview went to Petra Procházková of Deník N for a piece with a Russian political scientist, while Ondřej Kundra and Tomáš Brolík of Respekt were recognised in the best written report category for an article about war crimes investigations.

    Czech Television’s Michal Kubal and Vojtěch Hönig won best report in the audiovisual section for a piece called Ukraine: Faces of War.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Eight die in building site prefabs fire in Brno
    05/04/2023

    Eight people died in a fire at building site prefabs in Brno on Wednesday night. Police are investigating the causes of the blaze, which is believed to have broken out at around 2 a.m.

    A spokesperson for the Brno police said the fire occurred in 12 adjoining pod-like units.

    It is not clear what the prefabs were being used for and on Thursday morning the owners had not yet contacted the fire service, the Czech News Agency reported.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Petr Čech inducted into Premier League Hall of Fame
    05/03/2023

    Retired footballer Petr Čech has been inducted into the Hall of Fame of England’s Premier League. The Czech, who is now 40, is one of the most successful goalkeepers in the league’s history, notching up 202 clean sheets in the competition, most of them with Chelsea.

    Čech achieved 24 shut-outs in his first season with the London club in 2004/2005, a record that has not been equaled since.

    He made 124 appearances for the Czech national team, which is also a record.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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