Czech-Austrian relations thaw, but Temelin remains problem
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan met his Austrian counterpart in New York last night, as the European Union announced it was lifting sanctions against Vienna and as Prague quickly followed suit. The two sides certainly have a lot to talk about, and the thorniest issue is--you guessed it--the opening of the Temelin nuclear power plant in South Bohemia, which Austria, a non-nuclear country, has been fighting tooth and nail to prevent. Over the last few days Austrian anti-nuclear protestors have been blockading checkpoints on the Czech-Austrian border, and the Austrian authorities have done little to stop them. Hardly a good atmosphere for restoring good bilateral relations. Rob Cameron spoke with Vaclav Zak, the editor-in-chief of the political bi-weekly Listy: