Remix News

Tag: Czech Republic

  • Babiš: Journalists abusing my son’s illness will get sued

    Babiš said the complaint has been filed over a hidden camera filming of his son in Switzerland, who is suffering from schizophrenia. It is against Swiss law to film someone without his knowledge, they abused him and his illness in order to take me down, he added referring to the case as the Palermo coup.

    Babiš also claimed he was completely unaware of what was underway at the Seznam, even though one of the journalists asked him about his son’s whereabouts, on which Babiš refused to comment. According to Babiš, journalists are now in Ukraine, trying to find his son’s girlfriend. The PM called their efforts vulturism, adding he met the girlfriend in Geneva without mentioning whether she is living with his son or not, in order to protect them.

    I haven’t had a single thought about my resignation, I don’t want to leave until all the work is done, because I succeeded in this country and that’s how I can get it back, Babiš said in the interview.

  • Pointless no-confidence vote with no Plan B on the horizon

    The most divided are the Social Democrats, Babiš’s coalition partner. Its Prague organization called for the Prime Minister’s resignation and asked for the Ministry of Justice seat, both wishes are unlikely to be heard. Moreover, the stumbling block remains the same as for the opposition, they don’t actually know what they could achieve from a government fall.

    This is the biggest weakness of all plans for Friday’s vote. ODS Chairman Petr Fiala rejects the criticism of the absence of Plan B as an alibi. On the other hand, he adds that there is also a plan C, D and E. Chairman of the Pirate Party Ivan Bartoš then criticized CSSD for not having plan B itself.

    “Each MP who supports Prime Minister Babis’ government takes a responsibility for his problems,” said Fiala, and it is undoubtedly true, as it is undisputable that the opposition does not want to take any responsibility itself. It is the CSSD that should shut the government down instead of the opposition, and the movement ANO should replace the Prime Minister in co-operation with the president.

  • Screw you, Brussels!

    Stopping drawing European funds can only lead to early elections in which the current government parties will reach the so called Kimersen outcome. Thus, Juncker will not go for it, even if his “Zeman’s infection” develops into pneumonia. And if so, then Merkel and Macron would send him somewhere to the closed pavilion.

    If anything happens, it will be a fall in Italian debt ratings deep into the speculative band, and creditors like pension funds and banks will get rid of Italian bonds with losses for their clients and as usual with the help of taxpayers. This creates the ideal space for speculative investors who know that when the Italians stop paying, the Germans will begin to pay through the purchases of the ECB.

    The euro needs to be saved at any cost, and the question of who is paying the price should not be asked in a decent European society. The Italians will get through the rebellion, but it will help them as much as the Greeks, that is not at all. A really good club, the eurozone.

  • Babiš: There’s no crisis at all, the government works great

    Although the media is writing about it, the current crisis-situation is fictitious, Babis said. Stressing that the truth is on his side, Babis also said that he is now fighting against lies, misinformation and information without context. According to him, journalists who contacted his son behave like the mafia and their only goal is to put the prime minister in jail.

    “People are sending me thousands of positive messages. Even those who do not like me say that this has simply crossed the line,” the PM said.

    In the second part of the interview, Babis repeated that he was surprised that Social Democrats are not about to take part in a no-confidence vote in his cabinet. According to him, Jan Hamacek, head of the CSSD, saved the party with his decision to be part of the government. The prime minister also assured everybody of the good relations in the coalition. There is no problem in the government and the co-operation should continue.

    “Democratic elections have taken place with clear results and I do not understand why I should resign. I do not see any reason for new elections,” Babis said, refusing the idea of early elections at the end of the interview.

  • Hungarian national consultations – family edition

    “Europe is a continent of empty cradles. Within the national consultation, citizens can say whether they see Hungary’s future in Hungarian children, or in an exchange of Hungarian children for migrants,” said deputy minister for social affairs Katalin Novák. 

    Among the possible measures are for example, the introduction of a zero tax for women who have three or more children, or a no-interest loan for young married couples up to 10 million forints.

    The national consultation is, as always, supported by a massive campaigns in the media and billboards. The first national consultation was organized in 2016 under the slogan “Stop Brussels” followed by the campaign “Stop Soros” last year which was aimed at American billionaire George Soros who is, according to Orban, one of the key donors and supporters of illegal migration to Europe. The government collected almost 2.5 million questionnaires. They all spoke out against migration.

  • Controversial priest Piťha not allowed to preach in Italy

    Piťha was supposed to visit Arco on the occasion of a ceremonial unveiling of a statue of St. Wenceslas, the Czech nation’s patron, a few days prior to the Czech national day celebrating him. Originally, the Archbishop and cardinal Dominik Duka was invited, however he offered his place to Piťha as he was not able to attend due to his tight schedule.

    Later, the Prague Chapter in a brief official statement claimed that Piťha won’t be preaching in Arco due to diplomatic reasons. According to information Lidové Noviny gathered, it wasn’t the Czech Embassy’s order, but because of flaws in the event’s organization. For example, after several changes, the Czech guest was given only a three-minute-long slot.

    “An unforgiven fanaticism of Islamists is behind the migration, but we are to blame for the migrants’ surge as we got eroded by a long-term well-being,” was supposed to be a part of the sermon. 

  • Italy asks France to seize the Aquarius

    The ship has been operated by the Médecins Sans Frontières and SOS Mediterrannée since 2016 and is now investigated by prosecutors in Catania. The ship is suspected of labelling 24 tons of potentially toxic waste as ordinary waste. Prosecutors are looking into how migrants’ clothes, food leftovers and sanitary waste had been handled.

    The accused organizations categorically refused to press charges, claiming that standard procedures had been followed each time, including waste disposal procedures. It is for the first time when authorities are questioning operations of the Aquarius, they added.

    The Aquarius has been a focal point of several diplomatic disputes. It started to operate under the flag of Gibraltar, which had to be replaced in August to the Panama flag. When Panama revoked its flag in October as well, MSF and SOS Mediterranée said it was done under political pressure. Now, the ship has a temporary Liberian flag, which limits its search and rescue operations.

  • The IC is unnecessary and dangerous

    The Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence is one of the most controversial agreements to be ever tabled by the Council of Europe. In fact, it’s much ado about nothing and both conservatives and progressivists have chosen the Convention as their ideological proxy war battlefield.

    No one is saying that violence on women and children does not exist, but it is extremely difficult if not impossible to eradicate them as some people are violent and stupid. Therefore, it can only be tackled by a more effective enforcement of the current legislation and education.

    The IC is supposed to include a definition of sex as a socially established role, however it does not define and mention sex but gender. And while sex is based on a biology, gender is a social construct. A real effect of such definition will always be limited. Both camps are overestimating a power of international agreements.

    On the other hand, it is truly hard to agree with some parts of the IC. A need to remove customs and traditions based on stereotypes of men’s and women’s roles for example. Mother taking care of a child up to a certain age and a male’s importance during other phases of childhood are patterns developed over thousands of years.

    The so-called traditional family concept come to an end as a side effect of emancipation on women and for many young people, marriage has no value. So instead of debating useless agreements, maybe it would be wiser to look for new concepts.

  • ANO movement to support its chairman Babiš

    Saying that all party´s deputies will vote against the proposal, deputy chairman Jaroslav Faltýnek expects a no-confidence vote to fail. The Communists promised to support Babiš´ cabinet earlier this week and Faltýnek thinks the Social Democrats will do the same.

    The Social Democrats are to decide on Wednesday whether to support the ANO-led government. Its chairman Jan Hamáček is in favor of remaining in government with ANO but has suggested Babiš could step down as prime minister. Also, the Prague branch of the Social Democrats called on the national party to push for the prime minister’s removal.

    Rumor has it that CSSD will need more time to decide as the leadership wants to further negotiate the situation with Babiš.

    Czech opposition parties agreed to push for a no-confidence vote in the government after a news report published by website Seznam.cz said Babiš´ son had been sent to Crimea to hinder a fraud investigation on what has become known as the Stork Nest scandal.

    But Babiš has repeatedly denied all accusations and said he would never resign. PM explained that his son had been treated for schizophrenia since 2015 and travelled to Crimea voluntarily.

  • The Left more bizarre than we thought

    Ocasio-Cortez proved that she is not able to take care of her own money. If she had at least a basic economic education, she would earn some money or she would take a loan which she could pay back immediately. The young congresswoman shows how the modern Left thinks. They only wait for help and then take money from the government.

    The example of Ocasio-Cortez shows that the United States will have a serious problem. Giant debt, incompetent Democrats in the House of Representatives, it is not good for America. In past, the Left had at least some leaders who were intelligent, just like Marx. This young woman so far proved that she is not able to manage her finances. But she thinks she knows how to manage money for someone else.

    Miss Ocasio-Cortez is only one of the prototypes of economically uneducated left-wing activists. Another example can be seen in Germany where Social Democrat Secretary General Lars Klingbeil came up with an original idea. According to him, people will be entitled to not go to work every twelfth year and will receive money for it. It would be 1,000 euros net.

    Klingbeil said, “I am 100% convinced that social democracy can be attractive if it brings new ideas.” Social democrats understand that they have survived and have nothing to offer, so they try to go more and more to the left until the program begins to coincide with Communism. Left-wing activists tend to think that money grows on trees and want more and more loans. However, these ideas are very risky and dangerous. One of the threats is that this way of thinking might be tempting for poor people in Africa. In the end, the Left and its fairytales can lead us to yet another migration crisis.

  • Czech Republic to send 11.5 million euros to Turkey

    The EU agreed with Turkey on financial assistance schemes in 2016, in return, Turkey is expected to stop migrants fleeing to Europe via the Greek islands. In 2016, the assistance approved by the EU added up to 3 billion EUR and earlier this year, EU28 agreed to allocate additional 3 billion EUR to Turkey, out of which 2 billion will be taken from the EU budget and 1 should be covered directly by the member states.

    According to a current proposal that is a part of the government’s agenda to be discussed on Tuesday, the Czech Republic should pay 11.38 million EUR (296 million CZK) in annual installments. Next year’s payment is supposed to be 2.57 million EUR, with 3.34 the year after. The three remaining payments from the Czech budget will be lower.

    Turkey has accepted over 3.5 million Syrian refugees so far, the most of all countries. In the past, migrants used to continue on boats to the Greek islands and seek asylum in the EU. In this regard, the EU-Turkey agreement has been successful. The agreement includes a commitment for Turkey to accept the return of all migrants who reached the Greek islands through Turkey and by sea.

  • Merkel unable to eat humble pie

    The Chancellor refused to eat humble pie and reflect on her policy of 2015 in a way which could be bearable for citizens of a city where migrants are suspects in the murder of a German. Merkel said that mistakes were made as the government did not pay enough attention to countries of migrants’ origin, instead of regretting her decision to open Germany’s borders to migrants.

    In fact, her explanation can be interpreted in several ways. Her government should have expected certain kinds of a behavior from immigrants and be better prepared to oversee them. Another interpretation may be that opening borders and letting unlisted people in are two separate things.

    Let’s say it was a government’s stupidity that is not going to be repeated. Therefore, Germany indeed learned a lesson, but at what price? A dangerous trend is coming hand-in-hand with such an approach – a nurtured openness to Muslims and their demands on governments. 

    Let’s take the UK as an example. They refused to grant asylum for Pakistani Christian woman Asia Bibi, because it ‘would lead to riots and attacks on civilians and embassies’. Although it may sound like a part of Sharia law, it is an official statement of the British authorities.

  • V4 shares a positive stance towards nuclear energy

    Nováková hopes that nuclear energy will be ‘pardoned a little bit more’ by the EU in accordance with its climate protection goals. Nuclear energy might be one of the solutions for de-carbonizing of economies, added Nováková and mentioned that the EU must remain competitive in the global market, keeping in mind the US and China.

    The four Visegrad Ministers, or their deputies, responsible for the energy domain held a meeting in Bratislava. Slovak Economy Minister Peter Žiga announced a plan to terminate subsidies for coal mines used for energy purposes in 2023. Nuclear power plants have a great share of the electricity production in Slovakia and two blocks of the Mochovce plant are under construction.

    Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš earlier this year stated that Czechia plans to further develop nuclear energy and build new blocks at the Temelín and Dukovany power plants.

  • The West should get its own house in order before preaching to the Visegrad

    Even though the countries of the Visegrad are significantly poorer than the so-called West, which is of course directly affecting wages and living standards, they are not really lagging behind.

    The gap between the richest Germans and the runners-up from France is striking. 45,000 USD versus 38,000 USD if compared the GDP per capita makes a huge difference. In general, the gap between Germany and France is much bigger than between France and the Czech Republic.

    It is evident that there is no such thing as the European first class. Poorer Visegrad countries are able to compete with the wealthiest countries in healthcare, education, diligence etc. Moreover, they are often beating the West in some categories.

    The Germans and more so the French tend to pontificate the Central Europeans. However, they themselves don’t play a premier league anymore. The Brits, now leaving the EU, are outclassing them in several aspects, just as the Danes, Finns and Estonians. Not to mention a comparison between the US and Australia, for example, a country that is usually pilloried for its hardline approach toward migration.

  • CDU against the UN migration pact

    If needed, we can opt in later, said Spahn to the Bild am Sonntag. Minister Spahn mainly criticizes the procedure and a lack of transparency towards the public. The German media has not been covering the issue properly and German politicians have been debating the pact behind closed doors only, he added. It is the same as with the TTIP agreement and it only raises concerns.

    Spahn’s initiative comes as a surprise given the fact that the UN pact on migration has already been approved by the union’s fraction in Bundestag. According to its statement, the pact should help to organize refugees and migration. In fact, Spahn is openly confronting his party’s leadership.

    The non-legally binding pact is now to be adopted by UN member states, though some countries, including the US, Australia, Austria and the Czech Republic already showed their disagreement and willingness to opt out. The saxon organization of the CDU also stood against the pact and many Germans are applauding to the above-mentioned countries, at least on social media.

  • Szijjártó calls on the EU to proclaim its Christian roots

    According to Szijjártó, there are some powerful groups within the EU trying to destroy Christian heritage and the Christian foundations of Europe in order to bring us all into the post-Christian and post-National era. He believes Europe is undeniably a Christian continent and European politicians must find enough courage to admit and support it. He also criticized that no reference to Christianity can be found in the Lisbon treaty.

    Hungary wants a strong EU consisting of strong nation states, which are openly proclaiming their culture and Christian roots, said Szijjártó, adding that migrants coming to the EU don’t intend to adapt to our culture. The Minister mentioned a French law, which prohibits wearing of conspicuous religious symbols in public schools, sadly including the Christian ones.

    The Hungarian government led by PM Orbán has been by the European Parliament to act against the rules of the EU. Now, Hungary faces a sanction process that may ultimately lead to a loss of its voting rights in the union’s institutions. Many member states, however, already stated their support for Hungary, so such a scenario is not expected.

  • Babiš claims the truth is on his side

    Babiš also commented on his visit to his son in Geneva, he said he explained to him what is going on. That some journalists are trying to tear them apart, he added. Babiš Jr.’s mother sent a video message to the TV in which she condemned the latest developments and asked the media to leave them alone.

    According to Babiš the scandal triggered by a story of Seznam news, is fabricated. Regarding a controversial trip of his son to Crimea, Babiš explained it was in his best interest given his state of mind. Babiš Jr. wasn’t kidnapped, and it wasn’t an obstruction during the Stork’s Nest investigation, continued Babiš.

    The PM regrets that people were demonstrating to convince him to resign, as he believes the truth is on his side. Babiš also didn’t forget to express gratitude to the President for his support. Zeman earlier this week stated he would still reappoint Babiš to form a government. Babiš now wants to ask Communist party leader Vojtěch Filip for an opportunity to speak in front of Communist MPs, because they are backing Babiš’s government.

  • Morawiecki: V4 is more than just allies

    According to Morawiecki, the Visegrad countries are more than just allies, their views and interests are overlapping to a large extent. And when it comes to alleged Euroscepticism of PiS, there isn’t any, he added. Morawiecki said that they are only fighting for what is good for Poland, just as any other Western European country.

    The recent march at the centenary of Poland in Warsaw was attended by the highest number of people in 30 years and it was clear for all of us what patriotism is, Morawiecki said. He believes that Poles are different when it comes to thoughts about history, because they had a chance to become a great empire and lost it. The 1918 brought a new hope for both our nations, and these days we are looking into the future and wish for a strong EU with strong V4 and the Three-seas, he added.

    Morawiecki also commented on the bond with the Czech Republic, saying the economies supplement each other and called the country a very important trade partner. He also mentioned that he pushed for tax system changes within the EU together with the Czech PM and praised their relationship.

    The Polish PM shares similar views to Babiš on the issue of migration and efforts to establish himself as a strong European leader.

  • UN migration pact becomes a baton

    Let’s be honest, if there was a migration pact 500 years ago, would it be acceptable for native Americans? The official statement goes that the Czech Republic will opt out from the pact because its comments have not been taken into account. Additionally, there are a couple of things wrong with the pact that must be mentioned.

    First of all, the pact was signed in Marrakesh on Human Rights Day on the 10th of December. On that day in 1949, the UN adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, migration is not one of the human rights the Declaration mentions. A right to leave any country is fundamental but not a right to be accepted in another.

    Secondly, countries are not divided on the pact into the West and East as usual. In this case, countries across the globe criticize the pact – the US, Australia, Japan, Denmark, Switzerland, etc. 

    And finally, it is often reminded that the pact is legally non-binding, thus its completely risk-free to adopt it. If that is true, why is there a need to adopt it in the first place? In the EU, values are usually mentioned instead of a legally binding character of an agreement. And we already know that those values, if breached by any country, could be used as a baton. Therefore, it might be wise to opt out, as a precaution.

  • Szijjartó heads to the Czech Republic

    The press office of the Czech Ministry announced that Hungary’s foreign minister, Péter Szijjartó and Tomáš Petříček will discuss the current state of both regional and international affairs. The meeting with the Hungarian foreign minister is one of his first important meetings since taking office in October. Petříček’s first official visit was to Germany where he met Heiko Maas, followed by talks with his Slovak and Polish counterparts. The Czech ministry is already preparing his next visit to Austria.

    One of the main topics of discussion surrounded mutual cooperation within Central Europe. The Czech Republic and Hungary are partnering under the Visegrad group framework, for which the current common denominator is a stance against illegal migration and refusal of the migrants’ redistribution. Both countries also rejected the UN global pact on migration.

  • Zeman will reappoint Babiš no matter what

    According to Zeman, Babiš could still govern for months in resignation and in the meantime, the situation would calm down. Zeman, however, doesn’t expect a no-confidence vote to end Babiš’s government. The vote has been triggered by the opposition because of current developments in the Stork’s Nest case and Andrej Babiš Jr.’s allegations.

    Babiš Jr. told a journalist that his father’s employee took him involuntarily to Russia amid the investigation. PM Babiš rejected such allegations and claimed his son is suffering from schizophrenia.

    Zeman’s prognosis is that it will all fade away soon. He also called thousands of protestors who gathered in Prague on 15th of November a ‘barking crowd’ and actions of the journalists investigating Babiš’ Jr. a ‘disrespectful vulturism’. 

    The President met with Minister of Interior Jan Hamáček and earlier that day with Vice-president of ANO Jaroslav Faltýnek to discuss the situation. 

  • V4 to form joint army group

    Benkő said the Hungarian government considers paramount the safety of Europe, a position shared by all the members of the Visegrád Group. He also said Croatia – not a member of the group – has offered to join the initiative and the offer was accepted by the V4.

    Benkő said the other main topic of the defense ministers’ meeting was migration. All four countries agreed that the unchecked entry of illegal migrants posed a security threat. He said that the other countries of the group have been assisting the Hungarian armed forces in combatting illegal migration since 2015: the Czech Republic and Slovakia contributed with military personnel while Poland with equipment.

    Benkő said the army group will be active in 2019 and expected to be re-activated in 2023, but gave no further details regarding the scope or concrete goals of the cooperation.

  • Vondráček: V4 wants to be part of the ‘healthy core’ of the EU

    Vondráček initiated a meeting of representatives of the Visegrad countries, Germany and France, which will be held on Thursday in Bratislava. Among the topics on the agenda will be the upcoming European elections and Spitzenkandidaten, migration, and Brexit. As Vondráček told Info.cz, he is most interested in discussing Marcon’s circle vision for Europe.

    President of the Czech Chamber of Deputies considers migration one of the strongest topics of Visegrad. Although the V4 countries managed to convince the European partners that the quota system and mandatory allocations do not work, the topic is still alive, and it is good to remember what Visegrad’s attitude is. Vondráček, for example, will be interested in Germany´s response to the fact that the Czech Republic has joined other countries and rejected the UN migration pact.

    According to Vondráček, the V4 countries should discuss a common approach to migration regarding assistance in the African countries where the migrants come from, as well as the protection of the external borders and Frontex.

    Visegrad will also be interested in Macron’s vision of Europe as a circle of the eurozone and “the most cooperative”, surrounded by the second outer circle, in which it is in the interest of stability to engage dialogue with countries like Russia.

    The ALDE political group, which includes the Czech ANO, decided to cooperate with the Macron movement for the upcoming European Parliament elections. In the campaign, it wants to fight Euroscepticism, and according to Vondráček, a message from Visegrad should be clear: we are pro-European, we do not want to break the EU, we want to be part of its “healthy core”.

    The meeting will also discuss the so-called Spitzenkandidaten, promoted by the President of the Bundestag Wolfgang Schäuble. However, the Czechs are more reserved, and Visegrad sees the main legitimacy in the European Council, consisting of prime ministers who have been elected and have the support of national states.

    Regarding Brexit, the attitude of V4 is also united. Visegrad emphasizes the preservation of the four freedoms – the free movement of goods, persons, services, and capital.

    In the end, Vondráček described the meeting with Germany and France as part of a larger plan for a common foreign policy of Visegrad and added that the countries would try to find a repeated format for the meeting. Further meetings with representatives of the Benelux countries and with the Baltic states are planned.

  • European army project ends Trump-Macron bromance

    Even before Trump’s visit to France, he was outraged when Macron said it’s necessary to build a common European defense. Later, during their meeting, all seemed to be forgotten. But not for long. 

    Trump attacked Macron on Twitter over his statements during an event for the 100th anniversary of the end of WW1. Macron criticized Trump for his nationalist approach and policies and he responded sharply, mentioning Macron’s failing preferences and unemployment in France.

    Their dispute is, however, still mainly caused by the common European defense issue. While Macron is a long-time proponent of European integration in the field of security, Trump repeatedly threatens his allies that NATO might not be defending those not contributing the promised 2 percent. 

    Paris does not reach the 2 percent limit yet. It expenses amount to only 1.8 percent of GDP in defense. “Emmanuel Macron suggests building its own army to protect Europe against the U.S., China, and Russia. But it was Germany in World Wars One & Two – How did that work out for France? They were starting to learn German in Paris before the U.S. came along. Pay for NATO or not!,“ the American president wrote on Twitter. 

    European activities also attract the attention of the Alliance itself. At first, NATO had been skeptical about the ideas, now it cautiously admits them under certain conditions. “We welcome Europe’s greater efforts in the defense field, but it has to realize them within NATO. If there is something we have learned from the two world wars and the Cold War, then it is how important transatlantic unity and friendship are,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

    According to security expert Rachel Rizzo, working for the Center for a New American Security, Macron´s effort does not necessarily undermine NATO as critics fear. Rizzo has previously stated that the efforts may lead to better cooperation. She thinks that both parties will finally understand that undermining each other is of nobody´s interest.

  • Czech Senate has a new conservative leader

    Kubera, well known as a conservative and eurosceptic politician, won 46 votes in the second round of the secret vote, nearly twice as much as his opponent Václav Hampl who gained the support of 24 senators.

    Jan Horník, a nominee of the Mayors & Independents ended his run in the first round. Kubera has been in the Senate since  2000, he served as a Vice-president and a leader of the Civic Democrats’ club. He was also a long-time mayor of Teplice but stepped down after the last local elections even though he won.

    Kubera has been married for 50 years, and last year considered his candidacy in the presidential election. His opponent, Václav Hampl, has been an independent senator for four years (elected for KDU-CSL). Previously he was the rector of Charles University.

    The election of the leader was followed by the election of the Deputy chairmans. Jan Horník (56 votes) and Jiří Růžička (63) from the Mayors, Jiří Oberfalzer (71) from ODS, Milan Štěch (74) from ČSSD and Miluše Horská (66) from KDU-ČSL were elected.

  • Czech Government rejects UN migration pact

    The main priorities that the Czech Republic favored are a right for sovereign states to decide who will enter their territory and under what circumstances, a clear separation between legal and illegal migration, a commitment of the countries of origin to accept their citizens back and a mechanism for following an implementation of the compact without new institutions and expenses, added Brabec at the press conference. 

    The Office of the Government also noted that UN should focus more on its primary goal, a lowering of conflict tensions among countries, instead of focusing on the migration, so that money spent on warfare could be used for countries where mass migration originates. 

    As PM Andrej Babiš stated previously, migration is not one of the human rights and the Czech Republic will not accept any illegal migrants, adding that because of the UN pact, the difference between legal and illegal migration became blurred. This view is also shared by Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček, who added that by blurring the difference, the pact fuels migration.

    Babiš already announced his intention to opt out of the pact to follow the US, Austria and Hungary in front of the Chamber of Deputies. More and more countries have started to question and criticize the pact, for example Bulgaria, Poland, Italy, Japan, Australia and Switzerland.

  • Babiš: It is a disgusting assault on my children

    Sabina Slonková and Jiří Kubík investigated Babiš’s children’s involvement in the Stork’s Nest case. In a story for online TV channel Seznam, they published footage showing Andrej Babiš Jr. shocking claims. In a reaction to the story, PM Babiš said they used suggestive questions when they assaulted his son at his place in Switzerland and recorded him on a hidden camera.

    PM Babiš stated earlier that his two children involved with the Stork’s Nest are suffering from mental illness. As he mentioned his daughter Adriana has a bipolar disorder. However, police investigators doubted their inability to testify due to their state of mind and press charges against both. Some politicians reminded Babiš that he himself dragged his children into the investigation when announced they were owners of the Stork’s Nest.

    According to PM Babiš, this campaign is yet another attempt to end his political career and to destabilise the political situation and the government. The story has been used to put pressure on law enforcement agencies regarding the Stork’s Nest and additionally it is of course used by the opposition, because anti-Babiš is their only agenda, he added.

  • Czech MEP Zahradil is the Conservative Spitzenkandidat

    The two candidates announced so far, Manfred Weber and Frans Timmermans, are alike – they want to strengthen the role of Brussels at the expense of member states. Therefore, there should also be an alternative view from a conservative perspective, even more importantly from one of the so-called new member states, he added.

    Zahradil plans to start his campaign in Brussels on the 28th of November. However, he already highlighted three priorities of his candidacy. First of all, a revision and simplification of the communitarian law package, which is outdated and burdensome for the business sector. Secondly, in current times of increasing protectionism, the EU can be a global free trade leader and for that it’s necessary to remove trade barriers and interconnect markets, the EU-Japan trade agreement is a great example. And finally, the EU has to restructure its budget to be able to help border countries instead of exaggerating its agencies, if it seriously wants to tackle illegal migration.  

    Zahradil became the third official Spitzenkandidat. The largest group in the European Parliament, the EPP nominated a Bavarian, Weber, while Socialists and Democrats selected current Commission Vice-president Timmermans.

  • Opinion of the majority is not populism

    According to Klaus, Halík’s take lacks content, but it is strong in its aggressive appeal. Halík apparently abandons his original defense of a modernist ideology with concepts like liberal democracy, genderism and mass migration. He is positioning himself in the middle, between radical supporters and radical opponents of the gender ideology, which is impossible. One cannot just sit in the middle, moreover as a priest, simply has to take a side.

    Is seems like Halík is seeing a populist when somebody disagrees with him or likeminded people. But that cannot be labeled as infectious populism. The opinion of the majority is not populism, just as the criticism is not to be mistaken for a media lynching. Especially in the case of a handful of disagreeing articles, fabricated only to make an impression of a plurality of views.

    Piťha’s sermon was a warning against the dangers of the Istanbul Convention and gender ideology in general. There are many of us who rightfully fear the consequences, therefore it was not an abuse of a sacred place, but only in order to stampede the public as Halík put it. Halík wants us to believe that a hysteria is spreading across the Catholic Church. In fact, the Church remains silent on this, which sadly leaves enough space for ideologists like Halík. Unfortunately, when he advises his fellow priests to focus on preaching gospels only, it is a textbook ‘do as I say, not as I do’ case.

  • In defense of Roger Scruton, against lousy journalism

    However, when you see news about something you’ve experienced, something you know, it can quickly become horrifying. Which is exactly what happened in the case of the recent controversies surrounding Roger Scruton. Allegedly, Scruton has been under pressure since Buzzfeed uncovered some of his views. First of all, how they could have uncovered something that has always been widely and freely accessible online and in libraries. It looks like Buzzfeed only ‘collected a file’ on Scruton in order to take him down. It’s not a work of an independent media but an ideological task force.

    The UK government appointed Scruton a member of some of its commissions and Buzzfeed ‘exposed’ him as a man who claimed islamophobia and homophobia are all made-up, homosexuality as unnatural and pointed out his ties with Orbán. After reading such allegations, it would be easy to say it’s good that there’s finally someone saying ‘the truth’ or, on the other hand, to condemn the post-Brexit Britain as doomed.

    The truth is, the article about Roger Scruton is a clear example of a lowly journalism. Sadly, it gained traction and many leftist outlets wrote about him in a similar manner and it had been adopted by the Czech media. Scruton is a British conservative philosopher, respected lecturer and writer who never had an ambition to build cultural barricades.

    For the Czechs, it would be absurd to buy into such allegations. He is one of the best-informed Western intellectuals on the Czech Republic, someone who shaped our history. He founded an educational foundation, organized visits of renowned philosophers, his Dictionary of political thought got translated and published immediately after the revolution in 1990. He often visits the Czech Republic and he understands us, the Czechs well. Moreover, he was awarded by President Havel back in 1998.

    His words on homosexuality are nothing but a descriptive statement. His relationship with Orbán goes back to the 1980s when he was fighting Communism. Contrary to those allegations, Scruton even spoke in favor of the CEU with Orbán.

    If the UK government surrenders to a bunch of Twitter warriors and repeal Scruton, it would be one of those moments that we would have to admit that the liberal West as our idol has fallen and we don’t want to be a part of it anymore.

  • Nonsense emission limits will damage the Czech economy

    Hunger in the Third World countries, an irretrievably destroyed environment, hundreds of billions of euros spent on absolute nonsense – biofuels. Hypocritically acting as nothing has happened, we have silently canceled the targets for biofuels. Unfortunately, we did not learn anything, and we are on the best way to seriously damaging the Czech economy by lowering CO2 emission limits.

    The European Parliament proposes a 40 percent reduction in CO2 emissions for cars by 2030. EU member states propose 35 percent and Czech politicians, in line with German politicians, call it a great success of diplomacy.

    The draft of Brussels is not so strict this time. MEPs and some member states, hunted by environmental activists, compete with each other to see who will push for more cuts, regardless of the technological possibilities and the damages they will cause.

    Emission limits carry a problem that everyone knows about, but nobody addresses it, because the whole fight for greener cars would collapse like a house of cards. The emissions limits legislation anticipates that an electric car has zero CO2 emissions. But in fact, the production of an electric car has a negative effect on the environment, the batteries are powered mainly by coal from coal-fired power plants, and the recycling of electric cars is particularly complicated because rare elements in batteries cannot be recycled. Legislators, however, ignore this process. Otherwise, the production of electric cars would not make sense.

    Consequently, the current practice is nothing but subsidies for the sale of electric cars and the fines for not following the emission limits are drastic. Carmakers selling electric cars will have to go well below the actual car production costs to meet the emission limits. Basically, their margins will fall, resulting in mass dismissal. Volkswagen has already warned that it will dismiss 100,000 people out of a total of 550,000 employees. At Czech Škoda Auto, the same model would mean dismissing 7,000 people. The Czech Republic is a supplying giant, and the automotive industry represents 10 percent of Czech GDP.

    Additionally, carmakers will no longer be able to produce affordable lower-class cars because they would risk high fines for the emissions of such cars. This would limit the availability of cars to low-income and medium-income groups. The poor would essentially subsidize the rich in their purchase of a car.

    The regulation is even more nonsense if you realize the real share of car traffic in CO2 emissions. It represents 5.5 percent of the 3.5 percent CO2 emissions for which humanity is responsible. Thus, the share of cars in CO2 emissions is 0.2 percent.

    We try to solve a real problem simply, with minimal resistance. Cars are something that everybody thinks is a problem, and the carmakers earn enough to survive it somehow. Politicians have chosen the simplest target that will have a significantly negative impact on the Czech Republic.

  • Low expectations for Palermo conference

    The two-day summit on the future of Libya started with a private dinner. Among the attendees are the main political actors in the country as well as the EU’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, the UN special envoy for Libya, Ghassan Salamé and Egypt’s president Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.

    Saying that he is curious who will show up at the summit, Czech PM Babiš stressed that the stable situation in Libya is a key issue for the European Union.

    But the chances of success for the Palermo summit are low because key world leaders such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and his Russian colleague Vladimir Putin did not agree to attend.

    The talks are also overshadowed by a diplomatic wrangling between Italy and France, which plan to hold Libyan elections in December. While France has been courting military commander Khalifa Haftar, Italy is the main backer of Libya’s prime minister Fayez al-Serraj.

    Still, Italy hopes the conference will help keep pressure on Libyan players to overcome their divisions.

  • Babiš stresses the importance of Schengen and border protection

    Two days ago, PM Andrej Babiš lectured at the Paris Institute of Political Studies during a visit to France. He believes internal reform of the European bloc is important, along with a need for fewer directives and a return to the roots of European values.

    Babis compared the EU to the Asterix village which has a strong defense, while there is freedom of movement inside. “Why is Greece in Schengen and Bulgaria not?” Babiš asked, adding that the single currency is not important to him because it is Schengen that really matters.

    The EU, according to Babis, must focus on border protection and the fight against human smugglers. However, internal reform of the European Union is also important. “There is no need to have the same tax and social systems, on the contrary, the internal market is still limited, it does not work as it should,” the prime minister said.

    Babiš ended his three-day French visit in Paris, where he attended a memorial ceremony on Sunday to commemorate the centenary of the end of the First World War.

  • Giving way to gender lobby is madness

    According to him, we live in an insane period when men are automatically considered violent, freedom of speech is being attacked, and people are afraid to call things by their real names because of ubiquitous political correctness.

    The debate on homosexual marriages is an attempt of a small group of people to raise their rights but it only opens another anti-discrimination door. It started with a registered partnership, and it may end up with a marriage of three or four people.

    For Juchelka, marriage is a bond of man and woman, a symbol of the society we live in. Traditional family is a unit of the future, and we need to preserve it because Europe is dying out. Nowadays, only 1.67 children per woman is born but to preserve the population, 2.1 child per woman is needed. This is not achieved by any state in the European Union. Therefore, the state must support traditional families.

    The debate in the Chamber of Deputies will be tense as well as the debate on the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women which, according to Juchelka, divides men and women and tries to introduce a new class war. It makes men aggressors and rapists and works with gender-based violence against women.

    However, freedom of speech is also threatened. “If we are to decide what to say in a pulpit, on campus or in the Chamber of Deputies, it is a way to hell. We cannot be endlessly dealing with political correctness and be afraid to speak freely,” Juchelka said.

    He also emphasized the importance of conservatism. More and more, people are starting to claim allegiance to it. They are bothered by constant enforcing some rights without dealing with the obligations. Conservatism must not be crushed by leftist progressists who are contemptuous of common sense.

  • Adopting the euro will not help say economists

    It all started with an interview published on aktualne.cz. Daniel Prokop, a popular Czech sociologist, backed the common currency by saying it would help us to get closer to the German salary and economic level.

    “People do not realize that they look like a donkey when they comment on economic issues without ever opening a textbook of economics,” Martin Pánek said during the interview.

    “I wonder how Mr. sociologist imagines it? Will it help us as much as it helped Greece or Italy? Is the media about to ask dentists about monetary policy next time, while economists will comment on trends in dental fillings?,” economist Marketa Sichtarova asked in her tweet, which received hundreds of likes.

    Another well known Czech economist, Pavel Kohout, argued that no poor country has been successful with the euro. “Try to come up with the story of at least one single country that the euro demonstrably helped to get closer to the level of Germany – you will not find it. Not one. Not even Ireland where the low income tax rate played the main role. The same goes for the Baltic countries.”

    Even Czech trade union leader Josef Stredula criticized Prokop´s idea. “The euro will not help us to catch up. Only real convergence will,” he wrote in a discussion, adding that the exchange rate of the Czech currency should be completely different to what it is today. According to Středula, the Czechs cannot adopt the euro.

  • Queens of tennis

    The last match, in which Katerina Siniakova outlasted American Sofia Kenin in front of a sold-out Prague O2 Arena, lasted almost four hours. “It was an unbelievable match for me,” Siniakova said right after the match. “It was up and down, with nerves. I’m extremely happy that I won. I thank all who came for their support. It was felt.”

    The Czech Republic retained its perfect record in the Fed Cup finals by capturing the trophy for the sixth time in eight years by defeating the United States in the best-of-five final. The remaining two matches were not played.

    On the way to the final, the Czechs beat Switzerland 3-1 in the first round and Germany 4-1 in the semi-finals. Then, on Saturday, Barbora Strycova beat Kenin to put the Czechs 1-0 ahead and Siniakova doubled the advantage with a win over Alison Riske.

    Both of the teams, the Czechs and the Americans were missing top players. Karolina Pliskova was ruled out due to injuries and Petra Kvitova due to illness. Also, the Williams sisters, Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys from the US team decided to miss out.

    “It was terribly difficult, I do not know what to say. The score on paper is 3:0, but the action on the court does not correspond to it, it was really challenging,” said captain of the Czech team Petr Pála.

  • Istanbul gender engineering

    If something is missing in our legislation, let’s get it there. If police capacity is insufficient, we can strengthen it. If it is necessary to train the police, even more, we can do it. No one has explained to me yet, what the added value of the Istanbul Convention is. To disagree with the Convention does not mean not protecting women and not fighting against violence against women, but disagreeing with a mad ideology that can easily be misused and is an integral part of the Convention. After all, the #MeToo campaign is a beautiful example of how far protection against sexual harassment can get.

    This is not about gender equality, but about something that overcomes even the existing absurd attempts of positive discrimination. The Convention will, among other things, require “a change of attitudes, traditional gender roles, and stereotypes that make violence against women acceptable”. Finally, this is not about protecting women, but about ideology.

    It will start with women´s and men’s quotas, through the implementation of various measures to promote new gender roles and the support of non-profit organizations that will carry these measures to the control and possible displacing of information supporting the original concept of the role of men and women in society. Here we are openly talking about censorship, and no one pretends we are not. Everything will be supervised by new experts, a new control body (GREVIO) with broad competencies and even wider immunity.

    Social engineering is green with envy. Also, critics of the Istanbul Convention are being labeled with backward, anti-Western, ignorant, or even a chauvinistic attitude, because reportedly they do not care about violence against women.

  • Mária Schmidt: Trump changed everything

    The first question of the interview was about Viktor Orbán. Kaiser asked Schmidt how Orbán has become almost a pan-European phenomenon able to stand up against the mainstream in the EU. Schmidt reminded that Orbán is backed by a two-thirds majority in the Hungarian parliament and is not alone in Central Europe either, with the support of Salvini and Babiš. “And this is a radical novelty in European history. The West is not used to a situation where Central Europe formulates its interest and advocates it,” Schmidt states.

    Similarly, the vote of the European Parliament against Orbán, according to Schmidt, stands on the idea of Western states that Central Europe should not defend its interests. Poland and Romania experience the same. “It’s about giving us a lesson. Even the Western media is attacking Orbán very brutally and unfairly.”

    Also, according to Schmidt, there is no freedom of expression in Germany, and the opposition media stands on the periphery, while the content of all mainstream media is practically the same. “A few days ago, I surfed all the major German servers from FAZ to Spiegel to find out who took the hostages in Cologne, but I learned from the English newspaper that it was a Syrian who referred to the ISIS. There is no freedom of speech in Germany, but there is in Britain. In Hungary, you could conceal such facts for half an hour.”

    On the issue of migration, Schmidt believes that if Orbán did not oppose Merkel in 2015, more than 10 million new migrants would be in Europe today. “Germany intended to let everyone in to Europe and then choose the best, the most qualified and to send the rest to other countries on the basis of the quota system.”

    Asked why FIDESZ is still in the European People’s Party, Schmidt said that part of the EPP is sovereignists such as the Bavarian CSU, some are globalists. Orbán hopes that there will be more sovereignists than globalists in the EPP after the next elections.

    Schmidt considers today’s western establishment worse than in the 1980s and 1990s when the elites tried to understand what is happening in other parts of the world. They later stopped doing so, and lack the skills and mental capacity to lead Europe. They do not even understand what Trump, who changed everything, means for Europe. “He set up a completely new political doctrine. He does not turn America into total isolationism, but at least he does not want to control the whole world. He does not want to export democracy to different places on the planet. He prefers bilateral agreements between governments over multilateral agreements with the ambition to pay around the world. This is very important.” Europe, according to Schmidt, cannot afford not to take Trump seriously.

  • Migration crisis is a project of liberal left-wing elites

    According to Jiří Weigl, it is rather a project of the liberal left-wing Western elites that have dominated the political mainstream and are determining the agenda at national and international level.

    Saying we should be careful not to be tricked, Weigl warns that the migration crisis is not only a fatal threat to the European future. At the same time, it is a phenomenon that shows how the original ideas of cooperation and integration in Europe have been transformed into something horrible.

    The UN Migration Pact shows that mass migration is something positive and desirable for today’s Western mainstream. What is more important, the ideas behind this pact are (finally) an open explanation of the current approach of the EU institutions and the top European politicians led by Chancellor Merkel to mass migration.

    Pointing to efforts to make migration a basic human right, Weigl also considers that main aim of the Pact is not to stop migration, but to make it easier and legal. More and more it is becoming obvious that the problem with redistributive quotas is far from over.

  • Traditional political parties are falling and Brussels is out of reality

    According to Jindrák, the end of the Merkel era will affect the Czech Republic. Merkel is known for being historically connected with the Czech Republic. Even though president Zeman is a strong critic of migration and EU policy, he said it is a pity that Merkel ends. Germany loses continuity, and it is not clear what direction it will go. Merkel, given the length of her mandate, embodied security and continuity, and President Zeman values his relationship with Germany.

    Jindrak states that migration is one of the causes of the collapse of traditional political parties not only in Germany but across Europe, and criticizes the European Union for not taking any substantial steps to prevent the “demolition” of traditional parties and the system. He added that on the basis of his experience while working in Germany, the media did not speak about certain topics for the sake of correctness, which is disaster for the EU. He also said the president and the prime minister agreed that the right to migrate is not a given right and expressed concerns about traditional political parties such as the German SPD, which are due to migrating and delaying decisions in danger of extremists.

    The Head of the Foreign Affairs Department then spoke about not having any “central topic“ which would represent the Czech Republic as a state and that is not good. Rejecting everything is not a program according to Jindrák who also criticized politicians for discussing the Pact in the last minute while it has been publicly known for more than two years. He ended this interview by saying that president Zeman is not a Russian troll and talks between Putin and the Czech side are conducted in a fair and balanced atmosphere.

  • Istanbul and the Migration Pact

    Péter Szijjártó described the UN migration pact as “a threat to the country’s security interests” and withdrew Hungarian participation in further talks. At the end of October, Austria, currently presiding over the European Union, has withdrawn very loudly. Sebastian Kurz confirmed that the pact was “outwardly charming, but very tough inside”.

    The Polish Prime Minister has also announced a press conference with Angela Merkel and said that his country is unlikely to sign the pact. Then Croatia, Slovenia, Switzerland and, of course, the Czech Republic followed the others. Only Slovakia remains a little bit silent from the Visegrad countries, but there are already excited discussions in Parliament.

    Supporters of a signature use the same non-moral arguments. The signature is defended by the fact that the pact is non-binding, implicitly saying: We will sign it and then we will not have to keep it. We will not be the reactionaries, the peasants! Apart from the exceptions, they do not mention the contents of the Pact and its benefits, they probably believe that the voters are not able to read it, and they might still be wondering why the words “commit” and “commitment” appear more than eighty times.

    The advantage probably is that the government of Andrej Babiš lives only by probing a mood. The Istanbul Treaty is a harder nut. If the purpose of the apocalyptic preaching of Petr Piťha was to halt the public debate and to prevent the silent reception of the document, it was fulfilled. 

    The Istanbul Treaty might appear an innocent piece of paper which is against violence, but ‘Homo brusselicus’ cannot do anything without “obligatory” adherents, which make the message unreasonable. Generally speaking, there are gender issues, LGBT marriages, reproductive rights and abortions, paid from the state budget.

  • Czech and Polish Foreign Ministers satisfied with meeting in Warsaw

    Czech Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček was satisfied with the way the Czech Republic and Poland dealt with the current issue of illegal migration. According to the Czech and Polish ministers, both countries want to cooperate with countries which share a similar point of view.

    “We, together with Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, have a joint project with Italy, where we want to address some issues, for example protection of coasts in Libya,” Petříček said. He also wants to cooperate with Poland on strengthening European security. In connection with security, Petríček spoke with Polish Foreign Minister Czaputowicz about the Polish effort to create a base for US soldiers in the country.

    They also discussed cooperation in building transport and energy infrastructure. However, they did not agree with the planned Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to transport natural gas from Russia to Germany. While Poland does not agree with the plans, the Czech Republic, which imports the vast majority of gas from Germany, does not have a problem with the construction.

    The ministers also agreed to coordinate the preparations for the forthcoming presidency in the V4, when the Czech Republic begins its presidency in the middle of 2019 and Poland will take over the leadership of the group a year later. So the country wants to ensure the V4 will speak with one voice and better promote its interests in the EU.

  • The gender debate continues…

    “When we consider nuclear weapons to be a possibility for killing a large number of human beings within a short space of time, we must think equally in the case of genetic manipulation or gender theory. They also do not respect the order of the world.“

    If you think some conservative politician said those words, you are wrong. This is not any random statement, the widely admired Pope Francis criticised the theory of gender many times.

    First in 2015, a year after the Istanbul Treaty came round. He shares the same visions on this topic as Prof. Petr Piťha, who has been an easy target for liberal critics after his recent speech against the Istanbul Treaty.

    “Man is committing a new sin against God the Creator. God created men and women as the ultimate creature and entrusted them with the earth. The intention of the Creator is inscribed in nature,” the Pope added, concerning people who do not follow the traditional notion of the division of male and female roles in society.

    On another occasion, he speaks of “the wickedness that today’s indocryption is by gender theory,” and considers it “an ideological colonization enforced by children,” whose proponents do not fit in with their methods of the “fascist youth organization Balilla or Hitlerjugend.” Pope called the theory of gender “a mistake of the human mind that creates so much confusion” and is a “step back”. I do not think there is a need for further explanations to make clear what Pope Francis tells us and on which side he would stand up for.

    In all cases, the need for protection of women and children is clearly declared, as is the position of the Czech Churches (representing over 90 percent of believers in the Czech Republic).

    A similar critique of the Istanbul Treaty is also heard by leading figures and highly educated experts. Each of us can make an opinion and compare it with that of Prof. P. Piťha and the vague attacks of his critics. We do not deny the discussion at all, but try to lead it correctly and in the spirit of brotherly love.

  • No “blue wave“ during the US midterms

    As expected, the Democrats gained the majority in the House of Representatives, but that is more or less all of their successes. Democrats promised the “blue wave” but it did not take place this time. On the contrary, thanks to the successes of the Republicans, Trump has strengthened his position in the Senate. This will be important for his “conservative revolution” in the judiciary, when the president, together with his ministers, seek to appoint new judges with conservative opinions.

    The fact that the Republicans in the upper chamber of Parliament have strengthened means that virtually all the hopes of the radical wing of the Democrats, who are pushing for ​​impeachment, have dissolved. The Democrats can make a proposal for a presidential appeal in the House of Representatives, but they won’t get the required majority in the Senate.

    Trump’s election successes include the fact that his party has won all the most watched duels last night. Conservative Senator Ted Cruz defended the traditional Republican bastion in Texas and remains one of the main leaders of his party. Rick Scott, the successful governor of Florida, who has become the new senator of probably the most important state.

    Trump is not an election loser, because yesterday’s elections made him a lucky loser – a happy loser. Despite the loss the president became a clear leader of his party and an almost indisputable candidate for 2020.

  • Indecisive CDU/CSU fail to reach agreement on UN migration pact

    Tuesday’s CDU/CSU debate on the Global Compact for Migration had an interesting development. We should pay close attention to the words of deputy Stephan Harbarth. “The Migration Pact is in German’s interest. Germany is the main target country for migration because it provides healthcare, social benefits, and education. This pact should move other countries to comply with these standards, and thus the migratory pressure on Germany would decline,” said Harbarth.

    While Harbath received applause for his speech, we should be careful. His proposals are clearly not in the Czech interest. Harbarth de facto says that the purpose of the pact is to move other countries to provide generosity in the German style.

    On the other hand, not all deputies agree with the pact. For example, Michael Frieser pointed out that if the pact is not legally binding, why should we accept it at all? After all, this opinion is often heard in the Czech Republic. However, the division of forces is not yet known, because in the end there was no voting put forward following the stormy debate.

  • UN migration pact to be rejected by the Czechs

    “This is a political, legally non-binding declaration, but we have discussed it anyway. In the past, the Czech Republic had comments and objections that were not accepted. We are concerned about the possible disruption of national sovereignty due to this pact. There is a vague distinction between legal and illegal migrants,” PM Babiš said after the government meeting.

    Babiš added that he is not afraid of impending international isolation. According to him, the UN should improve the conditions in the countries from which migrants come, thus eliminating the reasons for migration, rather than plan a global migration treaty.

    Minister Petriček also said that not all the Czech objections were accepted during the negotiations. Also, the whole of the EU has not succeeded with its comments. The Czech Republic, according to Petříček, should step back from the pact and so he will conceive the final material for the pact that will be submitted to the government.

    Former Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg (TOP 09) has sharply criticized the cabinet for its planned rejection of the pact. On the other hand, for example, the SPD is satisfied with the expected withdrawal from the pact. A representative of the opposite ODS Jan Skopeček then directly asked the government to refuse the convention.

    The Global Pact on Migration was pre-approved by all member states of the UN two years ago, except for the United States. In addition to the USA, Australia, Austria and Hungary rejected the pact, too. Further, Poland´s attitude to the document is negative, and Italy and Japan also plan to withdraw. Denmark, Croatia, and Slovenia also have objections about the pact.

    In spite of the attitude of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, the Visegrad Group will probably not adopt a common position on the pact because of Slovakia, whose Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák negotiated the agreement and now defends it.

    The pact is also being debated in Germany. Against the pact stand the AfD and some members of Chancellor Merkel´s CDU. According to them, the document does not sufficiently distinguish between refugees and economic migrants.

  • Opinion: UN migration pact in trouble

    The Austrian Chancellor’s announcement was very clear and unequivocal. “Austria will not join the UN migration pact,” he said in a statement.

    We view some points of the migration pact very critically, such as the mixing up of seeking protection with labour migration.

    Reacting to the above, Jean-Claude Juncker – who for some time has been displaying two-faced policies – said it was absurd that the European Union is unable to find a common voice in such crucial issues affecting the future. In a very liberal approach, he added that it would be best to have a system whereby such major issues did not need consensus, but could be agreed upon by a qualified majority.

    UN Secretary-General António Guterres – of a long Socialist past – did not personally comment on the decision but his spokesman did say that they regret the Austrian decision. The spokesman added, however, that the overwhelming majority of the popular opinion and UN member states support the pact.

    The pact is scheduled to be signed in Morocco this December. But it is quite possible that by then – in addition to the United States, Australia, Austria and Hungary – other countries will also opt out of it. First among them might be Poland, as Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said at a joint press conference with Angela Merkel that Poland will probably not join the pact either.

    And of course, the Czechs are also expected to make a decision this week. According to the latest opinion polls, their Prime Minister, Andrej Babiš remains the most popular politician. And this also shows that in supporting him and his anti-migration stance, the Czechs are making a very responsible choice.

     

  • 10,000 migrants arrived in Spain in October

    For the first time since the migration crisis began, Spain has received more than 10,000 immigrants during one month, as reported by the International Organization for Migration. By comparison, only around 1,000 migrants arrived in Italy, which had been the most popular destination for immigrants until now. 

    A total of 100,000 immigrants have arrived in Europe by the Mediterranean Sea so far this year. Almost half of them ended up in Spain, which is more than in 2015, 2016 and 2017 combined. An overall number of immigrants trying to reach Spain by sea is constantly growing.

    However, if compared with the previous years, the total number of arrivals in Europe from Africa in 2018 is significantly lower. For example in 2016 over the same period, nearly 350,000 immigrants arrived.

     

  • Migration is a global problem, an issue yet to be resolved

    Once the United States and Europe tightened their border controls, countries like Malaysia and South Korea became appealing. Most of the people seeking refuge in those countries are in fact economic migrants – young African and Arab adults. Also, they only want to reach their desired destination, as the American ‘caravan’ showed recently when refused an offer to stay in Mexico.

    From the European point of view, the main problem is immigration from Africa. In many countries, liberation from colonial rule has not met people’s expectations. Even though the overall economic figures have been rather positive, GDP has been rising slowly and even falling in some cases.

    It’s partly due to an extreme increase in the population across Northern Africa and Sub-Saharan countries. In general, the GDP of African states is volatile. The high unemployment rate around 10 – 15 percent in the North is even higher when it comes to young people. And foreign aid doesn’t bring an ultimate solution, billions and billion have been flowing there since 2000, many countries have seen their debt or a large part of it forgiven. Yet only the elite profit, while the poverty index doesn’t change. 

    Not even successful projects in the fields of oil extraction and resources management are benefiting the people. They almost entirely benefit only foreign investors and the local kleptocrats. That combined with recurrent famine caused by climate change, active militias, and tribal wars, it’s evident that migrant flow is not going to stop.

  • Merkel’s (un)certain future

    From the Czech perspective, Merkel has been a politician with an understanding for post-communist countries, and as such an ally. The rest of the EU led by France and Italy would treat us much worse if it weren’t for her.

    On the other hand, her decisions on the eurozone helped to divide states into the poorer South and wealthier North. The euro remained just a political project – a monetary union without a fiscal one, which is unsustainable in the long run. A lot of energy and time has been wasted on a debate that is no longer valid, and the structural issues of the common European currency weren’t properly addressed. The Czech economy is dependent on the eurozone. Unfortunately the German emphasize on too many savings left the EU deeply trenched, which now is to be seen in an Italian dispute over the draft budget.

    The other most important decision that shaped the EU that Merkel made was in relation to migration. Some may say she imposed her views on migration to the whole Europe. That said, it is important to mention that time hundreds of thousand of migrants were fleeing into Europe and Merkel’s decision to open the German borders may well have saved European stability.

    It would be premature to mourn or celebrate over Merkel’s political career. She said she wants to remain the Head of the German government to better tackle international challenges such as Brexit and Trump’s policies.

    The Chancellor also rejected speculations over her future in European institutions. However, rumor has it she may be a candidate for the next European Commission president or another top post in Brussels. If so, everything would remain more or less the same.

  • 88% of Czechs don’t want Muslims as relatives

    The organization compared older data from the West, and North European countries with more recent East European data and the difference is striking. For example, while in Spain almost three-quarters of citizens wouldn’t mind having a Muslim in the family, in Poland it’s just 33 percent and in Ukraine 25 percent.

    The result from the Czech Republic stands out even if compared with other Visegrad countries. The Czechs lead the charts with only 12 percent in favor, while for example in Slovakia 47 percent would welcome a Muslim in a family. When it comes to views about Jewish people, most people across Europe wouldn’t mind having them as relatives. Czechs are divided though, with 49 percent who would mind a Jewish person in the family.

    The research also focused on the role of religion and whether it is important to their national identity. According to the results, 78 percent of people agreed that you don’t have to be a Christian to be a ‘true Czech’. Only 7 percent of Czechs said that Christianity has an important role in their life and 29 percent of them responded that they believe in God.

    In Central and Eastern Europe, it also matters if a person was born in the country to share the national identity. It matters for most of the Romanians, Bulgarians, Hungarians and 78 percent of Czechs.

  • Opinion: The two faces of national sovereignty

    The approaching European elections will demonstrate Europeans’ attitudes towards national sovereignty. It is very likely that alternatives to the current leadership will gain momentum as will national conservative parties and those favoring sovereignty.

    And at this point we already have to face one of the fundamental issues of the European Union.

    “National sovereignty has different meanings in Eastern and Western Europe.”

    Central and Eastern Europe has for many centuries been defined by the struggle between outside influences and national sovereignty. The first Christian king of Hungary was given a wife from the Holy Roman dynasty. The Czechs – being closer to the empire and of lesser military strength, have not been so lucky: they were summarily engulfed in the empire.

    The same happened at the Eastern end: the first Grand Duke of Kiev received a wife from Byzantium, while the Bulgarians were engulfed much the same as were the Czechs. This was all par for the course in those times, but there is a question we should ask nevertheless.

    At a time when the monks of Reichenau illustrated Holy Roman Emperor Otto III’s gospel book with the provinces bringing tribute to him, why did the same emperor – otherwise very much preoccupied with restoring the Roman Empire – allow the Poles and Hungarians to remain independent?

    Mainly because Otto – a visionary of his time – understood that Central Europe was at the meeting point of Eastern and Western influences and was realistic enough to accept that. And here is where the two sovereignty concepts diverge. In Western Europe sovereignty has in most cases been a given for the better of the previous millennium, while Central Europeans had to fight for even provisional independence.

    Thus in Western Europe sovereignty is an abstract concept that must be respected by all decent nations, while for Central Europe it is an achievement gained with great sacrifices. It was perhaps Solzhenitsyn who best phrased this difference by saying that while freedom and wealth weakened the Western character, Eastern Europeans developed a much hardier character under Soviet oppression.

    Tony Blair, the Socialist Prime Minister of Great Britain said in 2003 that the eastward expansion of the European Union will result in radical changes in European politics because,

    Eastern Europeans’ attitudes towards freedom are not warm and cozy, but remain driven by strong sentiments

     

    Paraphrasing Miklós Zrínyi, the 16th century Hungarian military leader who spearheaded the fight against the Ottoman Empire, we can say that the sovereignty of a political community is nothing without the power to assert its interests. And this is what the next European elections will be about.

    Title image: The provinces of Rome, Gallia, Germania and Sclavinia bring tribute to Otto III. (Gospels of Otto III, c. 1000, Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek)

  • Distortion of the migrant crisis

    The first misleading interpretation is in the effort to compare the number of incoming migrants to Europe today and in 2015 (the peak of the migration crisis). The second dangerous tendency is to make heroes from the culprits.

    The argument that, compared to 2015 the migration issue is solved because only a fraction of migrants flow to Europe, is absurd. The Old Continent has produced an incredibly complex economic, social and security problem for several future generations, more precisely a disaster. The cost of integrating migrants will be enormous and we will only bear the consequences of this social experiment.

    The second dangerous tendency is to make rescuers from the culprits of the mass migration crisis. According to some, the European Union or Angela Merkel contributed to the reduction of the number of migrants, while Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban had no influence on the drop in incoming migrants. But it is an incredibly false manipulation of latest history.

    It was just Viktor Orban’s policy and the arrival of politicians like Sebastian Kurz and Matteo Salvini that put some defenders of boundless migration to Europe aside or to force them to revise their plans. Without politicians such as Prime Minister Orban, Chancellor Kurz and Interior Minister Salvini and others, mass migration to Europe would continue to this day.

  • ´More Europe´ is not a solution

    Despite the fact that the world is always full of danger, history is nowadays on the side of the majority. Nations are alive without the permission of muddled editorial offices and academic departments.

    In recent years, nations have become the islands of resistance to socially unfair globalization. Similarly, migration and its implications show why it is essential to maintain our national identity. And last but not least, the Babylonian tower called the European Union shows how essential it is for the nation to preserve as much independence as possible.

    However, a significant part of the intellectuals only spread the green-rose ideals of some Western politicians. They support the invasion of an infant society that bothers every clear idea and prefers migrants rather than their own people – the society that simply encourages minorities to question the opinions and lifestyles of the majority.

  • Politicians divided over marriage for gays and lesbians

    A third of the deputies of the ANO movement are for allowing marriages of the same-sex couples, one third is for amending the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms with enactment of marriage only as a bond of man and woman, and a third of the deputies are those undecided.

    Patrik Nacher then came up with a compromise proposal that same-sex marriages should have the same rights as heterosexual couples. But it would not be called marriage. “I take marriage as a symbol, as name of the relationship between man and woman, which differs from another relationship by giving birth to children,” Nacher explained.

    However, there is no agreement across the whole Chamber of Deputies. Almost fifty deputies signed a proposal for marriage of two women or men, by contrast forty other members across the party, headed by Marek Výborný from the People’s Party, signed a proposal to enshrine in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms that only a man and woman have the right to get married.

    Among other parties, the most supportive are the Pirates. The ODS, the Social Democrats and the Communist Party will have a free vote, so the MPs will be able to vote individually. To get the proposal through, 120 MPs and three-fifths of the Senate are needed to vote for it.

  • The end of the Merkel era and the Czech economy

    Angela Merkel’s era at the top of German politics is coming to an end. At the next CDU meeting, where the new party leadership will be elected, the Chancellor will nut run for the post of boss of the party.

    In response to an unexpected step the euro temporarily weakened because markets are concerned about uncertainties about the further direction of the eurozone.

    The markets speculate that the next Chancellor can be somehow less inclined to a policy of austerity and debt reduction. It is therefore possible that the German export machine will weaken, with a negative impact on Czech subcontracting companies.

    It is also possible that the country’s next leader will put more emphasis for domestic, German production. This would lead to the relocation, for example, of a part of Škoda Auto’s automotive production to Germany.

    Merkel’s decision is not potentially bad news for markets only, but also for French President Emmanuel Macron. With the weakening of her position, he must at least for the time being forsake his dreams of reform of the eurozone, including the creation of his own budget as well as the appointment of its own finance minister or the deepening of the banking union.

  • Enemies of the Visegrad Group are both in Paris and Prague

    We should keep in mind that Macron has visited two not-so-active members of Visegrad. It is no coincidence that he did not visit old-fashioned conservative Poland or Hungary. The cause of his journey is certainly not about the worry about liberal democracy in the Eastern parts of the EU.

    Drawing attention to the latest statement of the new Foreign Minister to Visegrad, Kaiser favored the approach of Prime Minister Babis, who realizes that solidarity with the others in the Visegrad Group is better for him than a friendship with Merkel or Macron.

    New foreign minister Petříček´s attitude to the Visegrad Four is not so friendly which can be evidenced by his first foreign trip to Germany, instead of Slovakia. He sees the Czech Republic as a peaceful force in Central Europe, whose role is to “talk to Hungary and Poland about our problems and what is wrong”.

    Petříček then further developed his distance from Visegrad a few days later when he, in front of the diplomatic corps, said the V4 is only one of several formats from the Czech point of view and it depends on its added value.

    Although Kaiser acknowledged his words as more or less right, he also admitted that when taking over an office, one can either point out that the V4 is important to us, or to relativize it so that the Poles and the Hungarians know how it is with the Czechs.

  • Salvini in clash with the Czech Commissioner over the Roma community

    Jourova said on Friday that Italy is playing with fire. The head of the anti-immigration party Lega Nord described her words as “another nonsense from Brussels” and called her to visit the camps in his country where the Roma community live and where they violate the law.

    “Why doesn’t the lady come and visit a Roma camp in Rome or Milan and see the weapons, the illegality, the exploited children and the stolen goods?,” Salvini said in Rome, adding that “then she might wake up and change her mind.”

    Salvini faces criticism from human rights organizations for his approach to the Roma minority and immigrants. Earlier this year, he sparked outrage by announcing Italy planned to kick out Roma people from abroad.

  • Klaus: Macron and Merkel are afraid of the V4

    “The European Union is in the state of decomposition, and Merkel with Macron, dominant leaders of the European Union, are afraid that the countries of the Visegrad Four will somehow move away from the core of the EU,“ Klaus said in a widely watched TV interview. According to Klaus, the visit was nothing but self-promotion and PR.

    Klaus also commented on an interview Macron gave to various European newspapers. His statements about the need for greater integration have been described by the former Czech president as the classical brass arrogance of the French.

    Klaus sees the emergence of Czechoslovakia as a positive despite the difficulties faced by states during their history. However, according to Klaus, the Czech Republic insufficiently used the 100th anniversary of Czechoslovakia to reflect its current situation, its position within the European Union.

    Václav Klaus also spoke about Czech independence and compared the current situation to Austria-Hungary. “Our people did not want to live in Austria-Hungary, they did not want to live in a multinational monarchy, in a strange grouping where they did not decide by themselves but decisions were made in distant Vienna,” Klaus said, fearing that today we underestimate the threat of once again becoming part of another multinational group, the European Union.

    “The degree of autonomy and sovereignty of our country is already very limited and reduced today. And not realizing it would be closing our eyes and I would never want to do that, “Klaus said.

  • Zeman and Babiš: Hungary and Poland are our allies

    Considering Poland and Hungary are democratic countries, both the President and the Prime Minister shared their doubts about the EU’s actions towards Hungary and Poland. “I am convinced that both Fidesz and PiS are democratic political parties, with sort of different opinions than the European Commission,“ Zeman said, adding that it is rude that the EU interferes in the internal affairs of sovereign countries such as Poland and Hungary.

    Prime Minister Babiš replied to the same question stressing the importance of V4 group. “We are pushing issues together at the European Council. Things that some countries may not like, such as the attitude to illegal migration or budget issues. I think it’s good,“ Babiš said.

    The future of European integration was also discussed. Although the Czech president is one of the supporters of a stronger connection within the EU, he stressed that unification must take place only in areas where the EU is stronger than nation states. Instead, we get ridiculous regulations from Brussels such as the one reducing power and noise requirements of vacuum cleaners.

    Babis did not hesitate to answer, and if he had to choose, he would definitely vote for independence. Mentioning Brexit as well as the threat of a trade war or sanctions, Europe is at a crossroad, according to the Czech prime minister, and he would prefer to return to its very essence which is represented by four freedoms.

    “The Jacques Delors project is not working. We still have a lot of limits for our businesses, entrepreneurs, drivers or our transport companies. We have to fight for our interests in Europe, and I am very actively doing it all the time,” Babis said, agreeing with Zeman that he wants less of Europe because of a large number of unnecessary directives.

    On the other hand, the Czech Republic should, according to Babis, come up with its own initiative. As an example, he mentioned the so-called reverse charge, the only proposal that the Czech Republic has enforced since joining the European Union. Also, he did not forget to mention an active approach to solving the migration crisis. Even though we are a small country, we are able to propose solutions, he said. 

     

  • Babiš not sure about signing Marrakesh agreement

    Babiš’s main worry is that the GCM is meant to establish responsibilities for member states to accept migrants. “The definition of migration is also not what it should be,” he says and explains that the Czech minister of the interior is currently preparing an analysis of the document to see how it will affect the coutry’s interior policies.

    The Czech PM says that although he “did not like the GCM agreement”, he believes that it is necessary to analyze and discuss it among the Czech government. As to whether the Czech Republic will not sign the document, Babiš says, “I don’t know. But I cannot rule that out.”

    Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania should be a part of Schengen and we should stand guard at the sea and protect Europe from an influx of immigrants

    Andrej Babiš argues that the EU’s Southern borders should be better protected. “Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania should be a part of Schengen and we should stand guard at the sea and protect Europe from an influx of immigrants.”

    Although Babiš supports the EU, he is critical of the European Commission. As an example of EC authority over his country, he faced the European Social Fund and its lightly imposed social programs. Whereas the Czechs needed additional funds for investments and received less than in previous years. “It turns out that we can’t decide,” argues Babiš and claims that “reform is necessary. Brexit is proof of that.”

  • Foreign Minister Petříček: The V4 has something to offer Europe

    According to Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák, the V4 isn’t an anti-European group and it’s unfortunate that it has a negative image in Europe. He added that it now requires a lot of work to prove the V4 isn’t just an anti-immigration grouping of countries but can also be a part of European solutions.

    Petříček believes that under the current Slovak V4 presidency it has already started to change, as it is trying come up with constructive ideas and thoughts on improving and helping the EU. Visegrad had been missing a more positive agenda until now, Petříček added.

    The V4 should get back to the values it was founded upon back in the 1990s, said the Czech Foreign Minister. According to Petříček, the Visegrad Group wasn’t just meant for its members to quickly return to Europe, but there was also an intention to consolidate democracy in the four countries and anchor human rights in them.

    Both ministers agreed that the V4 offers a great foundation for cooperation of the Central European countries and its existence within the EU is just as legitimate as the existence of Benelux for example. The parties mentioned other formats of cooperation as well, like the Slavkov Declaration.

  • Italy defends EU budget proposal

    The European Commission has disapproved of Italy’s planned deficit of 2.4 percent of GDP, giving the Italian government three weeks to find a solution. Interior Minister Matteo Salvini reacted that such expenses are crucial to set Italy’s slow economy in motion and ultimately lower public debt.

    Brussels, on the other hand, argues that an increase in spending could make investors nervous and shake the eurozone. Even though there were budget deviations in the past from other ‘big players’ like France and Germany, the Commission never took such harsh action.

    Salvini claims that Italy won’t rewrite the draft budget no matter how many warnings Brussels sends. When people work more, they spend more and can pay higher taxes, explained Salvini. Brussels claims that the Italian government is openly violating the agreed-on eurozone rules, Salvini thinks the criticism stems from an unfamiliarity with the Italian environment. As he puts it, it may even be an attempted attack on the Italian economy in order to help foreign investors.

    Italy is the third largest economy in the eurozone, and at the same time has the second highest public debt after Greece. Thus, the Commission is further afraid of an enormous debt burden, which in total is now exceeding 131 percent of Italian GDP.

    The current Italian government has been in dispute with the EU ever since it took office. Illegal migration continues to be the main bone of contention between Rome and Brussels. The two are also divided over the sanctions against Russia.

    The latest dispute over the draft budget may theoretically result in sanctions of billions of euros imposed on Italy. Yet Italy has no intention to give up because it would mean a return of technocrats who promote absurd cuts, said Five Star Movement leader Luis Di Maio.

  • MEP Zdechovský: Istanbul Convention doesn’t fight discrimination but imposes it

    For example, Zdechovský recalls sociological research showing that when it comes to domestic violence, women are just as violent as men, and they only tend to use psychological terror instead of physical. Also, policemen say that one third of all cases are made-up by women to ensure they’ll get sole custody.

    He believes that the only solution would be to make so-called Cochem practice mandatory on every courts’ level. The Istanbul Convention on the contrary, is banning any alternative dispute resolution. And as told by an expert of domestic violence and violence against women, when it comes to violence involved in a divorce proceeding, Cochem couldn’t be applied, continues Zdechovský.

    Another serious problem of the Istanbul Convention lies in the fact that the entire divorce process will be affected by the certainty of woman’s innocence and also by the presumption of a man´s guilt. 

    There is a possibility that children will therefore lose their father for several years because the courts will be able to recommend only assisted contact to keep children out of the presence of an alleged violent person and thus not to emulate patterns of his behavior.

    Claiming that almost a third of all accusations are false, Zdechovský sees very dangerous consequences in such a practice. Overall, it is extremely likely that an atmosphere similar to the American movement #metoo will emerge in the Czech environment.

    At the end of his article, Zdechovsky argues that Czechia needs more money to tackle domestic violence. But not for a variety of feminist NGO´s that only misuse this topic to fight against men.

  • V4, Croatia and Bulgaria want looser rules for EU funds

    Our joint statement should serve as a base for negotiation with the European Commission about the future rules for drawing EU funds, it demonstrates our unity and strength, Slovakian Vice-premier for Investments and Informatization Richard Raši said recently.

    Even though Romania and Slovenia were represented in Bratislava, they didn’t join the joint statement. As highlighted by Raši, Romania didn’t participate due to its upcoming European Council presidency while Slovenia omitted because its representative lacked the respective mandate. The Czech Republic was represented by Regional Development Minister Klára Dostálová.

    Representatives of the six agreed they would welcome a recent timetable for utilizing EU funds to be preserved. Therefore, it would be possible to draw from EU funds for an additional three years once the programming period ends. Signatory countries also rejected a proposed shortening of this period to two years and a proposal for an increase of member states’ co-funding.

    Commissioner Cretu didn’t exclude the possibility of adjusting the multiannual financial framework proposal. However, simplified conditions for drawing EU funds are already included in it, she added.

  • Babiš and May discuss Brexit

    “I still believe that an [Brexit] agreement is possible, 95 percent has already been negotiated,” Babiš said following his meeting with May. I’m glad that I had a chance to sit down with the prime minister, especially in a time like this, when we need to finish Brexit talks, hopefully with a positive outcome, he added.

    Babiš expressed his hope that there will be a mutually acceptable agreement by the end of November, because everybody is a little bit nervous and it’s in the best interest of all involved to maintain cooperation with the UK.

    Babiš highlighted the more than a hundred years of partnership between the UK and the Czech Republic, calling Great Britain an important ally.

    The prime ministers also discussed illegal migration, the situation in Syria and recent developments regarding Saudi Arabia. Babiš said they share similar views on migration and a critical stance on the EU draft budget.

    On the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the foundation of Czechoslovakia, the prime minister took part in the so-called Czech week organized by the Czech Embassy in London, including a concert held by Czech philharmonics. Babiš also gave mention to the last surviving Czech pilot from the Battle of Britain Emil Boček, who turned 95 this year.

  • Genderists’ fight against male dominance relies on pseudoscience

    The West is slowly starting to resemble China’s credit system and its punishments for not having the right worldview. In the West, many faculties of humanities don’t tolerate freedom of speech as it’s a bourgeois relict undermining progress.

    A sermon of Petr Piťha wouldn’t resonate as much, if it wasn’t for the so-called Czech women lobby and its lawsuit against the priest. Many Christians already called for preserving the freedom of speech, even cardinal Dominik Duka supported Piťha’s right to preach freely. On the other hand, Tomáš Halík condemned Piťha’s words, saying he might be sued for spreading a hoax.

    The lawsuit of the Women lobby itself is harmless, Czech justice is reasonable and won’t be wasted words on some hyperbole. Serious political problems lie elsewhere though, it’s the effort to intimidate and silence an opponent. Abolition of the patriarchate won’t be enough for feminists.

    Czechs used to laugh at silly feminists, but not anymore. Women activists are pushing for a ratification of the Istanbul Convention, which forces states to fight against gender stereotypes under the pretext of a protection against domestic violence. It demands training, awareness-rising campaigns and school lessons on gender issues and such like. It all sounds very much like a reeducation effort. 

    A feudal non-democratic society that has been swept away by emancipation, was built on privileges and inequalities between men and women. Women can inherit, study, vote, choose a partner or a job where they get paid equally. Feminists want to free women mainly from the family. Their hallucination of an absolute equalitarianism is rejecting a freedom of choice based on a gender difference. Men should hunt and do politics, women should look after their children and household.

    Should we reject biological differences because of natural exemptions and hormone oscillations? It has nothing to do with human or citizens’ rights. The fight of genderism against an alleged male dominance completely relies on pseudoscience. 

  • Hungary denies “sabotage” of V4-Japan summit

    The opposition news portal 444.hu alleged in an article that the insistence of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to remove remarks critical to China from a joint V4-Japan declaration was the reason for the “failure” of the mini-summit. The meeting happened on the fringes of last week’s annual Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Brussels.

    The ministry said the 444.hu article was a “typical piece of misinformation, fake news”. While the ministry did not comment on the closed session of the meeting, it did say that prior to the V4-Japan meeting Babiš asked Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo not to issue a joint statement, on the grounds that the V4 as a group had no competence in matters of global policy.

    According to Magyar Hírlap, Orbán arrived late to the meeting due to a previous presidency meeting of the European People’s Party. Other sources also said that the meeting was successful in economic terms and the Japanese Prime Minister also commended the V4 states for their migration policies.

    Title image: V4-Japan meeting in Brussels. From left to right: Viktor Orbán, Andrej Babiš, Abe Shinzo, Peter Pellegrini and Mateusz Morawiecki. (Prime Minister’s Press Office).

  • Babiš cancels European Parliament address

    It was expected that Prime Minister Babiš would present his vision of the future of the EU, with a focus on the upcoming European elections in Jaunary. Sources claim he would have most likely built his speech on migration. However, some MEPs expressed their expectation to hear a more complex and long-term vision.

    Over the past weeks, Babiš profiled himself as one of main proponents of a zero-tolerance policy. He has been emphasizing the migration topic and refusing to accept any migrants. Many believe that the upcoming elections will be all about migration and will reshape Europe’s political future.

    There is no official statement from the government as to why the event was canceled.

  • Are there any parallels between Austria-Hungary and the EU?

    If just 20 percent of Czechs see the collapse of Austria-Hungary in a negative light, we should ask ‘what Austria-Hungary?’. However, it’s not only a historical question. According to the Eurobarometer polls, roughly the same percentage of people think that Czech membership in the EU is warranted. Then again, what EU? Are Czechs really against any form of establishment or are they only being cautious?

    An Empire that the question is referring to should be specified. Is it Austria-Hungary in the years 1914-1918, hectored by Wilhelm’s Germany, which dragged Europe into the Great war and couldn’t be saved? Or Austria-Hungary that secured stability in ethnically shattered Central Europe between Germany and Russia?

    Even T. G. Masaryk had been a loyal citizen to the Empire until 1914, and back then it was a more liberal state compared to Wilhelm’s Germany. But he also recognized when the situation in Austria-Hungary went beyond breaking point. 

    The same applies to the Czech relationship with the EU. Despite overwhelming skepticism, no one is questioning the ideas of a connected Europe without borders and a peace among its countries. The skepticism is rather reflecting a fear that the EU is scoring an own goal, just like the Empire did a hundred years ago – that’s why its citizens find it pointless to save it.

  • Piťha’s sermon, the catalyst of our time

    This year’s Prof. Piťha´s Saint Wenceslas sermon caused some sharp reactions, which did not come from the top of the Catholic hierarchy, nor from regular Catholics. Prof. Piťha has since been aggressively attacked by activists from the progressive group of liberal democrats headed by Tomáš Halík.

    Halík’s critical text contains absurd statements that require a response. It is not a gentle theological polemic that can only be discussed by the chosen ones. It is a fundamental controversy over the character of our time, our place in it and our future.

    Tomáš Halík considers Petra Piťha’s sermon to be “really scandalous” and says that (of course, unnamed) “legal experts believe that the fact of the crime of spreading alarming messages has been fulfilled.” But was it not a rather courageous polemic with propagators of destructive gender theory and deniers of a classical family?

    It is remarkable that Halík thinks that without “Francis´s reform the Church would become a marginal embittered sect”. This is an argument of a political and extremely leftist activist, not a factual analysis of the present world and the position of the churches in it.

    Halik’s thesis states that “during the Second Czechoslovak Republic the resistance of the part of Catholics to liberal democracy … has brought them near fascism”, which is an insult to the Catholic Church and is not based on any serious historical facts. Liberal democracy did not even exist before World War II, it is just a fashionable ideology of militant ecologism, genderism, feminism, and homosexualism. It is neither liberal nor democratic.

    Halík calls “invariable human nature” as an “unsustainable ahistoric conception.” By questioning the immutability of human nature, Halík supports a radically feminist program of destructing the world of normal men and women and of destroying the natural relationships between them.

    Leftist progressivism of Halík´s type is a danger to an entire society, especially to the Catholic Church. An attack on the most intimate human sphere – on sexual identity, on relations between a man and woman, on the family as a bond of man and woman – denies the essence of the Church’s teachings. To retreat its pressure, or even to accept its attitudes and opinions does not result in (perhaps necessary) modernization of the Church, but destruction of Christianity as such.

  • Czech Republic may not ratify the Istanbul Convention

    The Czech Republic is among ten countries that have still not ratified the Istanbul Convention. As it is an international treaty, both chambers of the Parliament must agree before completing the ratification process.

    Following the October elections, conservatives held a majority in the Czech Senate. And while the Civic Democrats and the Mayors and Independents are rather reluctant regarding the Convention, Christian Democrats are strongly against it.

    The ultimate aim of the Istanbul Convention is to eradicate violence and discrimination against women for being women. It demands an effective promotion of an equal approach to women and men. There are no mentions of a sexual orientation or the changing face of a family.

    The Istanbul Convention hasn’t been an issue in the Czech Republic, only until catholic priest Petr Piťha condemned it during his sermon. Piťha warned against ‘twisted laws’ threatening ‘traditional families’ and against a future where ‘homosexuals will be the superior class’.

  • Let’s talk about foreigners, not just illegal migrants

    The case of Ayan Jamaal Ahmednuur who sued the headmaster of a Secondary Medical School for not being allowed to wear a headscarf, could be an example. She served as a puppet for left-wing extremists such as the ombudsman Anna Šabatová, non-profit organizations and extremists. It is these extremists who have made the whole case a big political issue  

    Ahmednuur arrived in the Czech Republic in 2011 and immediately after arriving at the Ruzyně airport, destroyed all personal documents. She then applied for asylum and was sent to the receiving center. She received her 10-year residence permit (until 2021) in the name of Ayan Jamaal Ahmednuur, which was based solely on her declaration.

    A number of non-profit organizations immediately took care of Ahmednuur, thanks to which she received a certificate of graduation at the elementary school where she was rated “good” in the Czech language. However, this lady only speaks English very well.

    Although she was thrown out of the secondary school after only one day of study because she did not have any identity papers for.a second time, she at least managed to sue the school for not being allowed to wear a burqa. Finally, Ahmednuur passed the final state examination thanks to a retraining course, but three years later she only passed a part of the exam for a Czech driving licence with an English interpreter.

    “This case shows a strange system of inconsistency, active scams, and help from taxpayer-funded organizations,” concluded Klaus.

  • Another fallen soldier in Afghanistan

    According to The New York Times, the Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack which left one soldier dead and two injured. However, two Afghan officials, who did not want to share their identity because of the sensitivity of the information, said the “shooting was the result of a quarrel” and it probably was not about the infiltration of a Taliban fighter.

    The attack came only a week after the previous incident near Bagram military base in which five Czech soldiers were injured. In August, three soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing, one of the deadliest assaults on NATO soldiers in many months.

    Many politicians expressed their condolences to the family of the fallen soldier. Minister of Defence Lubomir Metnar described soldiers as heroes, saying that they fight against terrorism and ensure peace and security at home. “We are not leaving Afghanistan,” Metnar said at a press conference.

    PM Andrej Babiš wrote on Twtitter that he was struck by another loss of life in Afghanistan and that he wants to talk with Metnar on whether it is possible to take measures to eliminate these attacks.

    “I admire the bravery of our soldiers in Afghanistan. Their work is very important for the international community and deserves our respect and full support,” Petr Fiala, chairman of the Civic Democratic Party, said. 

  • Weigl: Will nation states survive?

    Western countries gained their “level” only because they were nation states and could economically grow thanks to capitalism. Pointing to the history of Austria-Hungary as well as the Ottoman empire, Weigl claims that the failure of these empires was due to their multicultural character. The same can be said about Czechoslovakia in times when it was led by President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk.

    Among other things, wars and disputes between countries tend to be used as an argument against nation states. That wars in Europe were caused by nationalism and that the EU united all European countries to help prevent another war. Weigl considers it a lie. Wars took place in Europe even before the concept of a nation or nationalism were established. The idea of nation states is natural and the European Union is trying to destroy it. That would be a disaster for the entire continent, Weigl said. 

    The first target of the European Union was to be united against the Soviet Union and to help Germany with economic growth. The concept of multinational Europe came with Jacques Delors and Maastricht. While people ignored it, the Schengen Agreement as well as the Lisbon Treaty were just another step toward destroying the concept of nation states. That´s why we have to deal with all the guidelines and propaganda served by the European Union today. 

    The idea of equal states in the EU is false, Weigl said, adding that European Union is ruled by Germany. Germans tried to rule Europe twice and they were unsuccessful. But now, they are a hegemon of a whole continent, unfortunately leaded by liberal leftists.

    According to Weigl, Brexit was a big blow for the European Union. Great Britain surely will not be a fan of German centralized hegemony and it will have its own geopolitical interests just like Russia does. So, the concept of a nation state is vivid, because the European Union is still having problems and cannot concentrate on demolishing this idea. And that’s why we should celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Czech Republic.

  • America interested in Czech nuclear power plants

    The Czech Republic will soon host two important representatives of the US government. Secretary of Defense James Mattis will visit Prague on the centennial anniversary of Czechoslovakia. Minister of Energy, Republican politician Rick Perry, will visit shortly afterwards, in mid-November. Both trips will follow a visit of the President of the House of Representatives Paul Ryan.

    Both Mattis and Perry’s visits are not just ceremonial visits that demonstrate that the US continues to regard the Czech Republic as an ally. Mattis and especially Perry will head to Prague for the Dukovany power plant completion. The Americans are interested in securing the job, just like other countries.

    Andrej Babiš’ Cabinet has not yet decided how the tender will be “made”. Some politicians, led by President Miloš Zeman, are pushing for an intergovernmental agreement with Russia, others for a public contract. Both Mattis and Perry will lobby to open a tender. Perry is allegedly open to discussing the issue on multiple occasions during his visit.

    At the same time, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš’ possible visit to the United States will be discussed. There is no date fixed, but it should be next year, and the topic of power plants will surely be on the agenda. 

  • What does the future hold for the social democrats?

    Even in countries with a strong social democratic history like Germany and Austria, it doesn’t seem to be just a momentary blip but rather an end of the movement as the leading political force in Europe. Social democrats have a hard time competing with new parties and movements fighting migration and corruption. They are lacking a vision for the 21st century.

    Sunday’s regional elections in Bavaria can be provided as proof of this fact. In Munich, where the Social Democrats have their mayor and where they won 40 percent of votes five years ago, gained only 13.6 percent of the votes this year. And the German SPD fell behind the winning Greens and CSU in second place. 

    But that is not the only example. In France, one of the bastions of social democracy, the traditional socialist party ended fourth in the last parliamentary elections, with only 31 of the original 280 mandates. A similar situation is evident in Greece and the Netherlands where the socialist “Armageddon” continues.

    The reform of social democracy, however, will be much more complicated than it was for the right-wing parties. It gets into the unfavorable position of someone who changes his basic principles according to how the current mood changes in society, even in terms of migration. However, the social democrats can certainly change, find new challenges, new passwords, and new policies. But the question remains as to whether they will still be Social Democrats after all  

  • German FM: Czech Republic is our key partner

    Maas appreciated that Petříček picked Germany for his first foreign visit as Foreign Minister. Regarding the EU, Maas noted that member states don’t have to be united on every issue, but they cannot allow the EU to be paralyzed by disagreements.

    According to Maas, there are some differences between the North and the South and between the West and the East. The German Minister said that we should “build bridges” and in the region of Central Europe Czech Republic plays a key role.

    Both ministers discussed the migrant crisis. Petříček said that Prague and Berlin are sharing similar opinions right now. He also added that “the migrant situation” is getting better these days.

    Both states agreed to cooperate on development projects, for example in Africa. The Czech Republic itself wants to significantly increase the funds it provides for development aid. Now it is circa 0.11 percent of Gross National Product (GNP); they would like to reach 0.33 percent of GNP in the future.

  • Majority of Czechs regret Czechoslovakia break up

    Over 70 percent of Czechs believe the foundation of Czechoslovakia after the collapse of the Austrian-Hungarian empire was the right approach. 

    According to a public opinion poll conducted by the Median agency, the survey found that only 22 percent approve of the Munich agreement forcing Czechoslovakia to surrender its border regions to Germany in 1938. And an even lower share of respondents agree with the post-Second World War direction of the country and its alignment with the Soviet Union.

    However, Czechs are divided when it comes to the question of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1993. A majority of respondents disapproved of the dissolution, while 40 percent of them agreed.

    In general, Czech citizens favored accession to the EU in 2004 and to NATO in 1999, both receiving around two-thirds support, with a slightly better result for the latter.

  • Babiš: I can think of a dozen better ways to spend EU money than on Frontex

    I was the first European Prime Minister who ever visited the headquarters of Frontex, after former Polish PM Szydlo, and I have to stress its extreme importance, because the whole strategy towards illegal migration is connected with it. Therefore, I went to Warsaw to familiarize myself with experts’ views and broaden my horizons for my diplomatic crusade against migration.

    Frontex aim not only to protect borders against smugglers, but also to return illegal migrants. They showed me how they operate, how they can detect suspects both on the ground and at sea. I witnessed their ability to track down and stop a truck filled with migrants before it enters the Schengen area.

    At the same time, they do a great job regarding illegal migrants’ returns. In the last year alone, they’ve dispatched 430 flights for them. We agreed that Frontex’s goal should be to deal with the countries of migrants’ origin on behalf of the European states. It would make our negotiating position stronger.

    Finally, I have to appreciate a plan for ETIAS, a European equivalent of the US ESTA visa. All above mentioned is great and much needed.

    However, as a businessman, I must address two issues – a plan to spend an extra 25 billion on Frontex and a plan to increase its staff by 8,500 and budget by 10 billion.

    Wouldn’t it be much better to negotiate a deal with the United States, Canada and Turkey, so we could use NATO forces to tackle smugglers in the Mediterranean? I think that European resources should be spent on investments. Just recently, we’ve announced a funding program for kindergartens and it had been exhausted in 16 seconds, with dissatisfied applications amounting to 2.5 billion.

    Europe is no longer facing an extreme influx of immigrants like it used to. Actually, it had dropped by 90 percent compared to 2015. Each coastal country has its own coast guard, there are 7,000 policemen from the EU28 ready to be deployed anywhere in a case of a crisis. So instead of boosting the Frontex budget, let’s allocate those funds for North African countries.

    Overall, my experience and knowledge gained in Warsaw has been really useful throughout the week, be it at the ALDE coordination meeting, V4 coordination meeting or a work dinner with Prime Minister Theresa May.

  • Bavaria voted against Berlin

    Bavarian voters had a large selection of 18 parties to choose from. Six of them made it to Parliament. With a relatively high voter turnout, almost 72 percent, CSU won but received about 10 percent fewer votes than in 2013.

    Horst Seehofer is undoubtedly to blame for CSU’s bad result. But the former CSU voters, who have now chosen AfD, are not against Seehofer´s recent policy, despite the mainstream media repeatedly indicating so. The media are simply trying to discourage as many voters from CSU as possible, but their arguments lack logic.

    If voters really questioned Seehofer’s attempt for a tougher anti-immigration policy after he became Interior Minister in Berlin, they would not opt for an even more anti-immigrant AfD but rather SPD. The Social Democrats were Seehofer´s counterpart in the Berlin government and could not stand his party, the SPD in Bavaria failed.

    Horst Seehofer has repeatedly criticized the Chancellor’s migration policy since the fateful opening of the borders in 2015. However, he retreated every time. A satirist called him “Bayer ohne Eier” (Bavarian without balls). It is a cruel but accurate characterization of his policy.

    This year’s CSU result is one of the worst in history. Still, CSU’s policy is preferred by an absolute majority. From the youngest to the oldest, in all age groups, people have often voted for it. 

    However, the true winner of the election is the Greens. In 2013, they had 8.6 percent which doubled to 17.5 percent this year. It is no secret that they would like to govern after 32 years in opposition, but that will certainly not work out. The Bavarian CSU, unlike CDU, is still a truly conservative party. CDU could create a coalition with the Greens and Free Democrats (FDP), however it will do its best to avoid this coalition.

    The main topic of the Bavarian election was the criticism of Merkel’s migration policy. This is why AfD made it to Parliament with the result of ten percent and completely defeated the Social Democrats. SPD was the second strongest party in 2013 with 20.6 percent, but this year gained only a single digit result.

  • Babiš and Gates discuss development aid

    Gates himself showed an interest in meeting Babiš among other leaders of the EU and EU28. Babiš wrote on Twitter that they discussed politics and funding of science and development aid. For instance, what can be done for the victims of the war in Syria. 

    After the meeting, Babiš invited Gates to Prague in May next year, when a Rotary International conference is being held. Gates is a member of Rotary International, an organization bringing together entrepreneurs and charities. “I will contact Mr. Gates somehow and let’s see if he accepts my invitation,” Babiš said. 

    Gates also plans to meet EU Development Commissioner Neven Mimica to sign ‘a significant financial contribution’ from his foundation to the EU’s External investment plan. The Foundation’s contribution is meant to support a development of diagnostic health services in sub-Saharan Africa.

     

  • Salvini may run for European Commission presidency

    Salvini said that the preparation of the Italian draft budget and the EU’s migration policy are keeping him busy, therefore no final decision has been made on his European Commission presidency candidacy. He revealed he has been actively discussing the latter with his Polish and Hungarian friends.

    However, as with the Spitzenkandidaten principle, Salvini has little chance of winning. After the last elections in 2014, representatives of the major European political groups made it clear that only a nominee of the winning party gets their support for the president’s seat.

    Earlier this month, Lega Nord leader announced a coalition with Marine Le Pen’s National Rally for the 2019 elections and named it Freedom Front. Salvini claimed he is expecting the EU to change significantly. In many recent elections across Europe, nationalist parties succeed with their criticism towards the EU, including Salvini’s Lega, AfD in Germany, FPÖ in Austria, Sweden Democrats and Orbán’s Fidesz.

  • Another attack on Czech soldiers in Afghanistan

    According to the AP news agency, a bomb attack against an armored vehicle a group of Czech soldiers were travelling in was carried out near their Bagram base, which is approximately 40 kilometers away from the Afghan capital, Kábul.

    Reports state that a suicide bomber sat in a car fully loaded with explosives and rammed into the NATO convoy. The Islamist movement The Taliban has already claimed responsibility for the attack.

  • Babis got Conte and Borisov on board for his Frontex proposal

    Austrian Chancellor Kurz said before the summit that the number of immigrants coming to Europe had dropped by 95 percent compared to October 2015. So, if less and less immigrants come to Europe, the funds should be invested elsewhere, Babiš said. He suggested focusing on cooperation with North African countries, which could stop the migrant flows.

    Babiš claims he convinced other leaders, namely the prime ministers of Bulgaria, Bojko Borisov and Italy, Giuseppe Conte, to discuss Frontex’s budget further. Babiš appreciated that both leaders declared they have capacities they can use to tackle migration from North African countries. Or in other words, both Bulgaria and Italy are capable of protecting the EU external border on their own and don’t need additional Frontex staff.

  • Director Svoboda: The EU aims to destroy nation states

    Svoboda attended a seminar at the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament organized by Jan Skopeček from the Civic Democratic Party.

    As a director of the movie Rašín, Svoboda thinks that Alois Rašín, if he were alive today, wouldn’t fall into the trap set by the unifying and centralist EU for the nation states.

    The seminar named ‘Will the nation states survive attempts for the European super state?’ was joined by vice-dean of the Faculty of economics Miroslav Ševčík, executive director of the Václav Klaus’ Institute Jiří Weigl and analyst Ondřej Krutílek from the think-tank Pravý břeh.

    Jiří Svoboda first spoke about Rašín himself, who was Minister of Finance during the First Republic. “I am convinced that in his temper, Alois Rašín, unlike Mr Masaryk or Benes, would have a much more radical opposition to the unifying and centralizing European Union that seeks not only to destroy the national states from which to create an “eintopf”, but also to destroy the democracy project. A smart person cannot see the European Parliament as a body in which the interests of smaller national states can be promoted. What interests can be enforced by 21 Czech MEPs in a body with 751 members,” said Jiri Svoboda.

    Svoboda further criticized the current direction of the EU, which is going to unify and deny the principle of the nation.

    The well-known Czech director then talked about the problems of today’s Europe, including denying the Christian-Jewish roots of Europe as well as breaking the traditional family institution which ceases to be made up of men, women and their children. According to Svoboda, it deserves extraordinary protection in terms of national survival and privileges. The Christian feasts and traditions are canceled and renamed to separate their unique spiritual dimension. One does not have to be too politically active to draw motivation to create a unified world where there is no place for sovereign states.

  • Vast majority of US citizens are tired of political correctness

    Overall, the study presents unusual findings, showing something that lies underneath the surface and is not usually visible. For years, the Americans have been deluding themselves into thinking that they want political correctness. In fact, only a leftist intellectual elite wishes for it  

    For example, 88 percent of native Americans are tired of political correctness, so are 87 percent of Hispanic people and 82 percent of Asian Americans. Against political correctness are also African Americans and the youth. Actually, the only group that showed somewhat positive views on it are well-paid white liberals with a university degree, who are self-identifying as atheist or agnostic.

    It might sound like fake news propaganda, but the study wasn’t conducted by More in Common organization and published in The Atlantic – a very liberal magazine. Obviously, the usual outcome of such surveys and studies that America’s public is divided into two equally camps, isn’t actually true. 

    According to the survey, there are only 8 percent of progressive activists among Americans. However, they take a disproportionally huge part of the public discussion given the small part of the population they represent.

  • Senator Valenta demands return of gothic crown jewels

    Valenta was surprised when he found out that some of the crown jewels are not on Czech soil. According to the Senator, it is a paradox that they are in Austria at the time when we are about to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the foundation of Czechoslovakia.

    The part that has been stored in Vienna’s Hofburg treasury consist of the gothic sceptre and orb. Valenta announced his initiative together with lawyer Zdeněk Koudelka, who stated that under the Saint-Germain peace treaty, a set of two scepters and two orbs existed. However, only the renaissance crown jewels are currently in possession of the Czech Republic, while the gothic pieces are in unauthorized possession of Austria.

    President Zeman should collaboratively with the Czech government request a return of the crown jewels, suggested Valenta. Both sets of the crown jewels had been in Vienna since the Thirty years’ war, but only the older set used in the late 17th century remained there after Czechoslovakian independence in 1918.

  • Babiš: Let me discuss migration with Morocco

    In the second half of the 1980’s, Babiš worked five years in Morocco as a Czechoslovakian business delegate. Babiš believes he would be able to contribute to tackle the migration crisis thanks to his ties in the country.

    The Czech PM has already requested an official visit to Morocco and Algeria, while his Tunisian counterpart is planning a visit to Prague. He added that the EU should conclude a similar deal with some African countries as it did with Turkey. The EU-Turkey refugee agreement practically closed the key migrant route from Turkey to Greece.

    Morocco is one of the main African starting points for migrants fleeing to Spain, which is now encountering more asylum seekers than Italy or Greece. EU leaders have been dealing with other African countries already, reminded Babiš in reference to Kurz and Tusk who negotiated with Egypt and Merkel’s activity towards Algeria and Nigeria.

    Babiš would also like to deepen economic relations between the Czech Republic and Morocco in order to improve the lives of Moroccan people and lower their motivation to emigrate to Europe. Thus, he plans to take Czech businessmen on board for his potential entrepreneurial mission

  • Retaliation for the Czech soldiers killed in Afghanistan

    According to information that Lidové noviny gathered, an operation was carried out by the 601st Special Forces Group that had been operational in Afghanistan for quite some time. Reportedly, one person had been killed and one had been captured.

    As it usually is when it comes to a clandestine operation, there are no official statements. It is alleged that all those involved had been ordered to strict silence by Prime Minister Babiš.

    The three Czech soldiers – sergeant Martin Marcin, private Kamil Beneš and private Patrik Štěpánek – will receive state honors in memoriam from Commander-in-chief President Zeman on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Czechoslovakian independence.

    The soldiers died when a suicide bomber detonated himself in front of their patrol at the Bargam base. In August after their remains were brought home, they were buried with military honors. According to their commanders, their actions on that day prevented an even worse tragedy and more causalities. 

  • Chief of Czech diplomacy finally appointed

    Tomáš Petříček replaced Jan Hamáček who temporarily led the Foreign Ministry together with the Ministry of Interior. “If we want to be taken seriously, we cannot speak with many different voices,” said Miloš Zeman during the ceremony. He added that he is looking forward to a successful collaboration ahead and welcomes the fact that Czech diplomacy will be consistent. 

    The new minister announced that he is now putting together a team of advisers – academics, diplomats and former politicians – but didn’t rule out the possible engagement of Poche.

    According to Petříček, the key topics for Czech diplomacy are conflicts in the Middle East and in Africa, and relations within the EU. His first foreign visit will be to Germany to meet his counterpart Heiko Maas.

  • US Defense Secretary to attend centenary event for Czechoslovakia

    Czech Ambassador to the United States Hynek Kmoníček says Mattis will visit other European countries as well, but his schedule has not been finalized just yet. It is expected that Mattis will sit down with PM Andrej Babiš and the Czech Minister of Defense Lubomír Metnar. It’s unclear whether he will also meet with President Zeman.  

    The main reason for an invitation was the parade as part of the hundredth anniversary celebrations. Originally, we negotiated for Vice-president Mike Pence to attend, however it would collide with the upcoming Congressional elections, said Kmoníček.

    According to Lidové noviny, a planned purchase of military equipment for the Czech army may play a part as well. The army plans to spend tens of billions on helicopters, radars, artillery and infantry fighting vehicles. It would be the first Czech ‘made in the US’ purchase since we’ve joined NATO, thus increased activity on the American side is only logical, explained Kmoníček.

  • Zeman: State honors go to those fighting “economic fu**ers”

    Zeman said in an interview with Czech Radio that he considers the struggle against business fraud to be a link between Vitásková, Krúpa, and Lorencová, for which they deserve to be honored. However, the president used one of the strongest Czech expletives in the live interview to describe the “frauds”.

    This was not the first time Zeman used vulgar language in the media; he has already described the meaning of “pussy”, referring to Pussy Riot in a live Czech Radio interview four years ago. Following that appearance, Czech Radio wanted to record his regular interview slots in advance, which Zeman refused.

    Many Czech politicians have criticized Zeman for using such strong language. PM Babiš, who rarely questions the head of state, said he understands that Zeman became angry referring to businessmen Viktor Kožený and Zdeněk Bakala, but using vulgar language was inappropriate.

    Zdeněk Bakala responded in a statement for the Czech News Agency, that “Miloš Zeman dangerously dishonors the office of the President of the Czech Republic with his crude expressions.”

    ODS Chairman Petr Fiala described Zeman’s words as inappropriate and unacceptable. “Maybe it will not surprise us, but we cannot get used to it,” Fiala said on Twitter.

    TOP 09 Chairman Jiří Pospíšil said that “the business activities of Zdeněk Bakala in the Czech Republic must be investigated, but calling him a business fraud is utterly inappropriate and disgraceful”.

    MEP Tomáš Zdechovský said that Zeman does not deserve to be Czech president and considers the president´s words disgusting.

  • Activist disrupts cardinal’s sermon

    During her silent protest, the activist wore a crown of thornes and marked her body with ‘the love of the truth’ sign. She also tried to criticize Duka himself for openly supporting Piťha.

    Many high-level representatives were present at the sermon, new Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček and the Ambassador of Poland, among others.

    The President’s spokesman Jiří Ovčáček immediately condemned the act. He wrote on Twitter that it’s symbolic that the far-left attempted to disgrace the sermon on the 40th anniversary of John Paul II’s papal inauguration. “We can´t get much lower”, he said in his widely discussed tweet, where he also criticized the spokesman of the Faculty of Arts at Charles University who backed the activist.

  • MEP Zdechovský: It’s about time to replace the EU leadership

    Zdechovský thinks that migration will remain an important topic for many citizens, mainly linked with security. There are still migrants involved in criminal activities and committing felonies, mainly in Germany and France, which cause extreme unrest and an anti-European sentiment. The EU has to become thinner, faster and much more capable in tackling issues like migration. The EU has to change after the 2019 elections, he said. 

    Political parties will open up the topic of EU reform in their campaigns before the European elections. According to the meeting of the European People’s Party in Austria, the topic will be addressed by Austrians, Slovaks, Hungarians and Poles, and Manfred Weber of the Bavarian CSU is also leaning towards it.

    “The European Union must no longer be socialist and neo-Marxist, it must be pragmatic and focus on topics linked to global challenges, not to be engaged in things that Member States should address themselves,” says Zdechovsky.

    Alongside this issue, there will also be a huge fall in social democracy in Europe, but changes will also occur in the People´s Party which will become more polarized. This was already reflected in the vote on Hungary. “We can communicate with Hungary. If there were someone other than Juncker or his deputy Timmermans, the situation would look different,” Zdechovský said, also highlighting Hungary’s influence in Slovakia, Romania and Slovenia.

  • General Pavel: We have a problem with political correctness

    General Pavel believes that efforts to protect religion or culture could be counter-productive. For example, we are irrationally over-protecting Muslims, he says, mentioning removed Christmas trees in order to not offend minorities. At the same time, Pavel said we have legal and moral obligations to take care of refugees. But it also has to be under control, because unregulated illegal migration is a serious problem. On the other hand, the migration issue in our country is purposely biased and overrated.

    The Czech political environment is full of labelling opponents without taking the time to think about their views. According to Pavel the reason behind this is an erosion of our values, we’ve become a player of fake news. He also speaks against an excessive push for gender balance, saying he doesn’t approve of gender quotas which are again an extreme example of correctness.

    Most people do not realize the real threat is Russia and its propaganda, believes Pavel. There are loads of websites, institutions and associations working as Russian bullhorns in order to undermine our values. Unfortunately, they’ve been successful so far.

  • Bavaria will remain moderate Right’s stronghold

    Since the CDU shifted its agenda to the left, its sister party CSU has been the only tolerated conservative force on the German political scene. And unlike CDU, it is critical towards the so-called ‘green consensus’, which is why CSU takes hits from all sides – the media, ‘Kulturschaffenden’ and the rest of the political scene including Merkel’s party.

    It seems like CSU was meant to fail, enough to be maneuvered into a shotgun wedding with the Greens, or it was an acceptable collateral damage at least. Well, this plan backfired, and Bavaria still has a chance to remain a stronghold of the moderate Right, as CSU can find a coalition partner in Free Voters and liberal FDP. Voters didn’t punish CSU because it went too far to the right. Actually, the 11 percent that the CSU is missing compared to the last elections spilled over to AfD, a party which hadn’t run for Parliament previously. By the way, 11 percent for AfD in Bavaria is much less than they usually gain in other parts of Germany.

    So, while CSU’s fall has been interpreted as a failure, worse results of the CDU in all the federal states and at a national level are usually accepted as fact. Even though you would have to decrease recent CSU results by 3 or 4 percent to get national support for CDU. And that’s where the drama begins – Merkel’s party is slowly dropping down to 25 – 20 percent and at the same time it’s losing its natural coalition partner. Soon there may be a previously unthinkable coalition between the Blacks with the Greens on a national level, only to prevent the so-called radicals from the AfD from rising to power.

  • Babiš and Morawiecki are on the same page before EU summit

    Higher spending on Frontex would ultimately mean less resources for structural and regional funds, explained Morawiecki. Whereas Babiš appreciated the role of the agency regarding migrants’ returns and its monitoring on the EU border. Still, he doesn’t understand proposals to expand Frontex when migration has dropped by 90 percent. 

    Both Babiš and Morawiecki believe it is necessary to help in the countries of immigrants’ origin. No one can force us to accept migrants, our common stance towards border protection of our countries is unchanged, it’s exclusively an internal affair, added Morawiecki.

    Juncker shouldn’t be involved in politics, he has other thing to do, said Babiš in reaction to the Commission chief’s comments about the V4 rejecting immigrants. As he told the media, Babiš wants to do something for the Syrian kids in Syria, therefore he is looking for land there to build houses and schools.

    According to Babiš, the EU should aim for more Balkan member states to join the Schengen zone, because it makes no sense to protect an area which is not really seamless.

    Both prime ministers are in full agreement on other issues as well, for example both countries support a ‘middle-ground’ Brexit.

     

  • Could a Czech become one of Europe’s leading ladies?

    Srnová admitted she is competing for the position that is crucial for promoting Czech interests in the EU. She would be responsible for attending key summits of EU leaders in the name of the Prime Minister, and preparations of the Czech EU presidency in late 2022.

    Even though there are more candidates, several high-profile sources say she is a front runner for the State Secretary seat. Another source told Aktuálně.cz that her possible nomination comes as a surprise as she has been almost exclusively focused on European funds, which is simply not enough for a challenging position like European Secretary. 

    However, Srnová believes her main asset is that her agenda is one of the Czech Republic’s priorities for the European multiannual financial framework negotiations. Also, her hands-on experience in Brussels should be a strong plus.

    What’s more, she is an expert on European funds, previously worked as an advisor to former European Parliament Vice-President Oldřich Vlasák and coordinated European policies at the Union of Towns and Municipalities of the Czech Republic.

    The State Secretary is the closest person to the PM in terms of Czech representation in the EU, as such Andrej Babiš’s trust is a main precondition for the job.

  • The Left continues on its own demise

    We should feel no sorrow for the communists and green extremists, but the decay of the Social Democrats is unfortunate as they tend to balance the moderate Right and even prevent a rise of far-left tendencies.

    The Social Democrats cannot blame anyone but themselves, because they stopped defending their own voters’ interest years ago and made up a new ideology to protect various minorities instead. They aim for absolute egalitarianism, act like European integration advocates and forget about the working class.

    Social Democracy is losing everywhere, maybe the exceptions being Scandinavia and Slovakia, and we will soon witness political divide in conservative and liberal camps. It’s happening in conservative Bavarian, the Labour party in the UK has been turned upside down, in France too and the list goes on.

    So, what does a polarized society indicate?The euro and debt crisis together with an ideology of absurd identities has hit European society hard. The post-war system has been exhausted and many issues are dividing the citizens – from an unequal and corrupt environment, global supra-nationalism, and immigration to the EU.

    The upcoming economic crisis could clean the air, hopefully in a good way.