SOFA not yet resolved

Negotiations between the US and the Czech Republic on the SOFA treaty, linked to the planned deployment of a US radar base on Czech soil, have not yet resolved, meaning that the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will sign only the main radar treaty during her visit to Prague next week. The main treaty, agreed some time ago, will enable the radar installation, while the SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) deals with US soldiers' status on Czech territory. The taxation of US staff at the radar site is the one remaining issue in the SOFA agreement that remains unresolved. According to Czech sources, US negotiators are trying to see that as few staff as possible will come under Czech tax legislation.