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Andrej Babiš' ANO party, Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party and Austria's far-right FPÖ have announced the formation of a joint alliance in the European Parliament called “Patriots of Europe”.  According to Andrej Babiš the emphasis of the new grouping will be on patriotism, sovereignty and tradition.

"We have three main priorities that we share and that unite us - defence of sovereignty, the fight against illegal migration and opposition to the Green Deal," Mr. Babiš said. He stressed it was important to strengthen the sovereignty of each member state, for Brussels' migration policy to change and the protection of the EU's external borders to be strengthened.

The new alliance will need the support of parties from four other European Union states before it can be recognized as a group in the European Parliament.

The Old Catholic Church in Czechia has announced that it is ready to bless same-sex partnerships in a church ceremony. This should be possible as of the beginning of 2025 when an amendment to the Civil Code will come into force allowing same-sex couples to enter into a partnership with most of the rights given to heterosexual couples. The Old Catholic Church, established in 1877, is the first church in the Czech Republic to publicly declare its intention to “marry” same-sex couples in a church ceremony. Last year, in another break with tradition, it ordained two women as priests.

The newly-approved amendment to the law gave same sex partners many new rights, but stopped short of calling same-sex partnerships a marriage.

Construction work has begun in the upper part of Prague's Wenceslas Square, to enable the return of trams to the square after a break of more than 40 years. The laying of 550 meters of new tracks will take three years and cost around 1.24 billion crowns. The new lines will connect the National Museum with Jindřišská and Vodičkova streets which cut across the square. The lower half should be pedestrian.  Work is also underway on the reconstruction of the existing tram tracks in Vodičkova and Jindřišská street, where tram traffic will be renewed at the end of September.

The Czech Republic and Ukraine will sign a bilateral security agreement at the European Political Community summit in London on July 18, Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced on the network X.  Kyiv has already signed 19 such bilateral agreements among others with the United States, Britain, Germany, France and Italy. The agreement pledges continued military support for Ukraine and also covers the training of Ukrainian soldiers, cooperation in the defence industry and assistance with demining. A similar agreement was also signed between Ukraine and the EU.