News

The Czech Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda has said that American troops could be stationed in the Czech Republic. Mr Svoboda, who is attending an informal meeting of the foreign ministers of the European Union member and candidate countries in Greece, said that history teaches us that security in Europe is not ensured without the United States. Foreign Minister Svoboda was reacting to President Vaclav Klaus's interview published in Saturday's edition of the German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung, in which Mr Klaus said that he was against the stationing of US units in the Czech Republic. President Klaus said that owing to their recent history Czechs were very sensitive to the topic of foreign military units being deployed on Czech territory. Alluding to the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, Mr Klaus said in Sueddeutsche Zeitung that any new stationing of foreign troops would probably not be welcomed. According to some speculations, the United States is contemplating removing its troops from Germany eastwards.

The Czech Air Force could obtain 14 old Tornado F3 fighters from the British Army, which would replace the MiG-21 fighters whose lifespan expires soon, either for free or for a symbolic price, the daily Pravo wrote on Saturday, citing Defence Minister Jaroslav Tvrdik. However, the Defence Ministry should consider whether the operation of the old British planes would be profitable.

According to the paper, army experts need to ascertain, for instance, whether general repairs would have to be made on the planes and how much the pilot training would cost. They are also studying whether the adjustment of airport infrastructure to the operation of Tornados would prove worthwhile. On Wednesday, Minister Tvrdik discussed the possibility of obtaining old Tornado fighters with his British counterpart Geoff Hoon.

Pits of explosives apparently abandoned by the Iraqi army have been discovered near a Czech army field hospital in the Iraqi city of Basra. According to Czech explosives expert Vladimir Kral dozens of anti-tank shells, grenades and rocket accelerators were found in water-filled pits by playing children. The children reported the ordnance to hospital doctors working nearby. British soldiers in charge of the area have taken control of the site, which also includes a building that locals say was used for torturing prisoners during Saddam Hussein's rule. The explosives were lying only 200 metres from the field hospital's surgical centre, which has been treating civilians and soldiers for about a week. Among the patients are children injured by explosives left over from the latest war.

Defence Minister Jaroslav Tvrdik is currently weighing four possible options for securing the defence of Czech airspace, among them the possibility of either buying a series of new fighter jets, relying on NATO as an alliance member, or negotiating temporary use of older British Tornado fighter jets for an interim period, before buying 24 new aircraft. The Czech Republic currently needs to replace its ageing Russian-built MiG-21 fleet. Speaking to journalists on Wednesday Minster Tvrdik said he favoured securing air defence through national means. The minister met with his British counterpart Geoff Hoon, in Prague, to discuss possibilities, with Mr Hoon indicating that Great Britain would react to concrete requests. According to Mr Tvrdik, Czech experts will now put together a concrete proposal. The Defence Minister is expected to visit Great Britain next month.