News of Radio Prague
Czech soldiers leave for Macedonia
120 Czech troops will set off for Macedonia on Friday and Saturday to take part in the planned NATO peace-keeping mission in the country. Czech Army Chief of Staff, Jiri Sedivy, had words of warning for the soldiers, saying it was uncertain whether all of the warring parties were willing to observe the peace agreement. General Sedivy said Czech participation in the international mission - called Essential Harvest - was a matter of prestige as the Czech soldiers will be responsible for guarding the highest command of the peace operation. NATO decided to send around 3,500 troops to Macedonia on Wednesday with the task of disarming Albanian rebels.
Temelin's turbine stable, output at 46 percent
The first reactor of the Temelin nuclear power station is back on-line and supplying the electricity grid with 350 MW, which is 46 percent of its nominal output. The power station was put in operation on Sunday morning after three months of repairs on the turbine which had showed excessive vibrations. However, on Wednesday morning, the plant again experienced problems with the turbine and the output had to be lowered to a minimum. Representatives of the power station said that the turbine no longer showed any deviations on Thursday.
Swedish authorities arrest two Czechs drug smugglers
Swedish customs officers have seized a record amount of heroin being smuggled into the country by two Czech citizens. Authorities in the West Swedish city of Gothenburg said they arrested a Czech man and woman as they attempted to smuggle 17 kilograms of the drug with a street value of 30 to 40 million Swedish crowns. If convicted, the two people face at least ten years in prison. The highest sentence for drug-smuggling in Sweden so far was 16 years.
WTTC: Czech investments in travel to grow 6.5 % annually
The World Trade and Tourism Council expects capital investments in the Czech travel industry to reach 1.7 billion USD in 2001. The Council said in a report that it expects investments in Czech tourism to grow by 6.5 percent annually over the next ten years to reach 4.6 billion USD in 2011. The capital investments in travel not only include investment in property directly linked to the business, such as hotels, but also transport infrastructure investments based on higher demand for travel.
Czech weather report
And finally, the weather forecast. On Friday, a cold front will drift slowly across central Europe, bringing rather cloudy weather with showers and thunderstorms. The highest daytime temperatures should range from 27 to 31 degrees Celsius. Saturday and Sunday should be partially cloudy a chance of showers and thunderstorms in places, with afternoon highs hovering around 30 degrees Celsius.
