• Czech presidency unharmed by change of government, says Klaus
    06/24/2009

    Czech President Václav Klaus says he believes the Czech Republic has passed muster during its six-month presidency of the European Union. He told Czech Radio that the fall of the country’s government and its replacement by a caretaker cabinet had not harmed the Czech presidency in the eyes of other states. Mr Klaus conceded, however, that the change of government had complicated the presidency, which comes to an end next week. Mirek Topolánek’s coalition government lost a no-confidence vote in March, less than half-way through the Czech presidency of the EU. It was replaced by an interim government led by Jan Fischer.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Three tasks not completed by Czech presidency, says Europe minister
    06/24/2009

    The Czech minister for European affairs, Štefan Fuele, says the Czech presidency has left three tasks unfulfilled: the election of a new president of the European Commission, enlarging the EU to take in Croatia, and strengthening relations with the new US administration. He said, however, that Prague had done all it could to deal with those matters, and any shortfalls were not due to a lack of effort. Mr Fuele made the comments after talks in Prague with the chair of the Swedish Parliament Per Westerberg. The Swedes take over the presidency of the EU from the Czech Republic on July 1.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech presidency calls of accession with Croatia
    06/24/2009

    The Czech presidency of the European Union has called off accession talks with Croatia scheduled for this coming Friday, due to Zagreb’s failure to resolve a border dispute with Slovenia, an EU member. The move is the latest blow to Croatia’s hopes of becoming the next state to join the bloc. Sweden said it had no plans to launch fresh efforts to settle the border dispute, which the EU sees as a bilateral issue, during its presidency.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • OECD: Czech GDP to fall by 4.2 percent this year
    06/24/2009

    Czech gross domestic product should fall by 4.2 percent this year, according to a new report by the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development. The OECD says the Czech economy should return to growth in 2010, predicting a rise of 1.4 percent next year. The Czech Republic is heavily dependent on exports and the main markets for its products are in recession.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Press: Plot to blow up Czech and other embassies in Islamabad foiled
    06/24/2009

    A plot to blow up a number of foreign embassies in Islamabad, including the city’s Czech embassy, was foiled by Pakistani police, the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported on Wednesday. Sweden’s foreign ministry confirmed the arrest last week of a man armed with two tonnes of explosives and suspected of planning to bomb its embassy and those of five other countries. A Czech ambassador to Pakistan, Ivo Ždárek, was killed when terrorists blew up the Marriot Hotel in Islamabad in September.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Two more cases of swine flu discovered in Czech Republic
    06/24/2009

    Two more cases of swine flu have been detected in the Czech Republic, bringing the total number to nine. A health ministry spokesperson said a young woman found to have the respiratory disease had recently been in Canada, while a young man, who is a US citizen, was discovered to have it after arriving in the Czech Republic on Sunday. Nobody has died of swine flu in this country to date.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • South Korean firm in talks to buy Czech turbine maker Škoda Power
    06/24/2009

    South Korean company Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction is in talks to buy Czech turbine maker Škoda Power for between USD 550 and 630 million, a spokesperson for the firm said, adding that the price had yet to be finalised. Doosan Heavy is South Korea’s biggest power equipment maker in terms of sales.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Supreme Audit Office head facing charges of mismanagement
    06/24/2009

    The head of the Czech Republic’s Supreme Audit Office, František Dohnal, is facing charges of mismanagement of the institution. The chair of the Chamber of Deputies supervisory committee, Vladimír Koníček, told reporters about the investigation on Wednesday, adding that police had request documents linked to the case. The committee voted to commission an audit of the running of the Supreme Audit Office.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Hašek promises to make changes if elected chair of Czech FA
    06/24/2009

    Trainer and former international player Ivan Hašek has presented his policy programme ahead of a vote for the position of chairman of the Czech football association on Saturday. He faces only one other candidate for the job, Luděk Vinš. Hašek, who has the support of many in the game, promises to reform the running of the Czech FA, find more money for youth and amateur football and rebuild the organisation’s headquarters.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Klaus last to decide on Lisbon
    06/23/2009

    The Czech president, Václav Klaus, told Czech Radio on Tuesday that he would only make up his mind on whether or not he will ratify the Lisbon treaty after all other EU states have reached a decision. Mr Klaus, who is a staunch critic of the reform document, said he would wait for the result of the Irish referendum scheduled for October. He also said he would not decide before the Constitutional Courts in the Czech Republic and Germany reach their verdicts on the document, and he will also wait for the Polish position on the issue.

    The Lisbon treaty was approved by both chambers of the Czech Parliament earlier this year but President Klaus refused to complete the ratification process. He said that putting his signature to the treaty would put Ireland under pressure to ratify the document.
    Author: Jan Richter

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