News

Dozens of people gathered in Prague’s Jan Palach Square on Friday afternoon demonstrate against authoritarian tendencies in global and Czech politics. According to the organizers, basic democratic principles, international law and the post-war world order are currently being called into question in global politics. “We are meeting here today over tendencies that frighten us, provoke anger and anxiety. The values we believe in and took for granted are being fundamentally questioned across the entire world,” organizer Marta Martinová told the Czech News Agency.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will receive Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš at Palazzo Chigi in Rome on Wednesday afternoon, the Italian Office of the Government confirmed. It will be one of Babiš’ s first foreign visits since his cabinet took office in mid-December.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he expects the talks to open new opportunities in bilateral relations. Czech Foreign Minister Petr Macinka, who this week met with his Italian counterpart in Brussels, said that the two governments have similar views on issues such as illegal migration or the Green Deal.

Manufacturers Nestlé and Danone are recalling several batches of infant formula that may contain toxic substances. According to the chief public health officer, tens of thousands of packages have reached the Czech Republic. The Ministry of Health announced the recall on its website. A list of the affected batches of products, including brands such as Beba, Alfamino, Nutrilon, Bebelo and Aptamil, is available on the ministry’s website.

The Czech and Slovak governments will hold a joint session on March 31, acting Czech environment minister, Petr Macinka, said following talks with his Slovak counterpart Tomáš Taraba in Prague on Friday. Minister Macinka said Friday’s meeting had focused on the two countries’ positions on various aspects of the Green Deal and its impacts on their respective industries, particularly the automobile industry in Czechia, and had also served to coordinate the ministries’ agenda in preparation for the joint government session. The talks and the subsequent press briefing were also attended by the Czech government’s Commissioner for Climate Filip Turek.

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš announced, soon after taking office in mid-December, that his cabinet would resume joint government consultations with Slovakia, which were suspended two years ago by the previous Fiala administration, because of differing views on key foreign policy issues.