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President Petr Pavel, who is the chief commander of the Czech Armed Forces, Defence Minister Jana Černochová and Chief of the General Staff Karel Řehka on Friday laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Vítkov, honouring the memory of soldiers killed in foreign missions on Armed Forces Day. President Pavel praised the professionalism of the Czech army, its dedication and commitment to the defense of common values. Defence Minister Jana Černochová said the ministry’s most important task in the present day was to continue modernizing the army and ensure stable financing. She said everything possible is being done in both areas.

Armed Forces Day has been celebrated in the Czech Republic since 2002 as a commemoration of the oath taken by Czechoslovak legionaries in Darney, France, in June, 1918.

National Bank Governor Aleš Michl has indicated that the central bank is ready to move, if a decision is made to adopt the EU currency. As soon as the political leadership calls for it, the central bank will create the conditions for the adoption of the euro, Michl said in an interview for Czech Television. However he added that he would welcome some more time before this happens, since he would like the Czech Republic to have a stronger crown before joining the eurozone and to be closer to Germany in terms of wages. Inflation is now below 3 percent and on Thursday the central bank board cut the base interest rate to 4.75 percent.

Czech Prime Minister endorsed the nominations for the highest EU posts at the summit in Brussels on Thursday. Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Mr Fiala said he knows all three nominees personally and that they have a good relationship with Czechia. The summit nominated Ursula von der Leyen as president of the European Commission, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas as head of EU diplomacy and former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa as president of the European Council.

Prior to the summit the Czech head of government met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss bilateral relations, including security and economic cooperation. Mr. Zelensky subsequently posted a short clip of the meeting on the X network, and wrote that ammunition from the Czech shells-for-Ukraine initiative is already helping Ukrainian soldiers in combat.

Czech police officers are searching the Prague apartment of Czech-born German politician Petr Bystroň from the far-right Alternative for Germany, on the basis of a request from their German colleagues, the daily Denik N reported on Thursday.

The 51-year old MP is suspected of accepting bribes from the Russian influence network Voice of Europe, a claim he has repeatedly denied. According to the DPA agency, police in Germany have previously raided the MP’s properties, including his office.