Temelin sours Czech-Austrian relations
The rather cool relationship between the Czech Republic and its southern neighbour Austria has now reached freezing point following the launch on Monday of the Czech Republic's second nuclear power plant, Temelin. Border blockades by Austrian anti-nuclear activists have continued all week, and the Czech Foreign Ministry is now turning to the European Union to have the matter resolved. Austria has likewise attempted to draw the EU into the dispute, saying Temelin must be discussed during this weekend's Biarritz summit. But can the European Union act as mediator in this conflict or would the two sides be better advised to sit down at the negotiating table and resolve their differences? A question Daniela Lazarova put earlier to Andrew Stroelein, editor-in-chief of the leading Internet weekly, Central Europe Review:
