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The Czech Republic's former foreign minister Jan Kavan, who is assuming his one-year presidency of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday in New York, has said the UN should play an active role in resolving the situation concerning Iraq which is facing a threat of a US attack. Mr Kavan told journalists on Monday that he preferred a political and diplomatic solution to war and bloodshed and as President of the General Assembly, he had to seek a broader consensus between states. The 57th session of the General Assembly takes place against the backdrop of the first anniversary of the September 11th attacks and US threats to launch a pre-emptive strike against Iraq. The heads of state and government who will address the assembly over the next two weeks are expected to devote considerable time to the war against terrorism, but any UN authorisation for action against Iraq would have to come from the UN Security Council, which is meeting on Wednesday, September 11th.

Agriculture Minister Jaroslav Palas, who's accompanying Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla on a visit to Denmark, has said the Czech government should guarantee Czech farmers their situation will not worsen after the country joins the European Union. Mr Palas has been trying to negotiate better terms for Czech farmers with EU agriculture ministers. He has described the talks as tough but he has also said the Czech Republic won't give up efforts to negotiate the best possible terms within the EU.

British immigration officials are back at Prague's Ruzyne Airport for another round of controls aimed at preventing economic migrants from entering Great Britain. Their presence at Prague's main international airport is part of a bilateral agreement between the Czech Republic and Great Britain, who both want to avoid the re-introduction of a visa regime. The arrangement was concluded in the wake of a mass exodus of Czech Romanies to Great Britain, many of whom have since been extradited from the country. Last Friday the British authorities put 20 Romany families on a flight back to Prague after refusing them asylum. Three of them were wanted by the Czech police and were arrested at Prague Airport. Human rights activists have criticized the arrangement and the Romanies who have undergone the immigration screening process claim that it is "racist". During the last round of immigration screenings, which ended two weeks ago, British immigration officials turned back 78 people.

Czech Army chief of staff Jiri Sedivy is attending a meeting of the Military Committee of NATO in Berlin on Monday and Tuesday, to discuss preparations for the Alliance's summit in Prague in November. The Military Committee session continues in Prague on Wednesday and Thursday. The Prague summit is the first NATO summit to be held behind the Iron Curtain. It is to be attended by representatives of 19 member states and 27 countries participating in the Partnership for Peace programme. Issues the summit is expected to deal with include relationships with Russia and further expansion eastward.