Czech defense minister in Washington for talks

Defense Minister Martin Barták is holding talks with US officials on new areas of cooperation after Washington abandoned plans to build a radar base in the Czech Republic. Minister Barták is expected to meet with his US counterpart Robert Gates later today to discuss the implications of the change of plan and the possibility of maintaining agreed on science and research projects. Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kohout on Thursday also emphasized the country’s interest in cooperating closely in some other sphere of activity, for instance space research.