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Prime Minister Petr Fiala has stressed the importance of reaching consensus with the opposition on security and defense matters in view of the turbulent global developments. He said that the planned meeting of parliamentary party leaders scheduled for Thursday was an attempt to reach broad agreement on the need to increase defense spending and consider where the finances should come from. The prime minister invited the leaders of ANO, the Freedom and Direct Democracy Party and the Pirate Party to the talks, but only the Pirates have confirmed participation to date. ANO and the Freedom and Direct Democracy Party have criticized the fact that the government approved a gradual increase in defense spending from 2 to 3 percent of GDP over the next five years without consulting the opposition.
The Czech minister of industry and trade, Lukáš Vlček, met with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington on Monday to discuss bilateral trade and the threat of a tariff war. “The United States is an important trading partner for us and the largest export market outside of Europe, with the value of Czech exports exceeding five billion US dollars," Vlček said, in a press release. The minister said he had raised the issue of a looming tariff war between Europe and the United States with Mr Greer and they had agreed that neither side would benefit from it and that it would only strengthen rivals, such as China. The two officials also discussed cooperation in the defence industry, cybersecurity and energy.
Czechia has banned animal imports from Hungary and Slovakia due to the outbreak of the highly infectious foot-and-mouth disease in these countries. The ban, which went into effect at midnight on Tuesday, also applies to animal products. The measures mainly affect sheep, goats, pigs and cattle. According to the Agriculture Ministry the ban will be reviewed in 21 days, and may remain in place for longer should the situation worsen.
Czernin Palace , seat of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Tuesday hosted a Czech-Mongolian Business Forum organised on the occasion of the state visit of Mongolian President Ukhnaagin Khurelsukh to the Czech Republic. The gathering of business leaders from both states was welcomed by Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský who said Mongolia had been a reliable and valued trading partner for more than 100 years. The two countries posted a record trade exchange of over half a billion crowns in 2023.
During the Czech-Mongolian Business Forum, the presidents of the Chambers of Commerce signed a Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation in the presence of the presidents of the Czech Republic and Mongolia.
Annual inflation in the Czech Republic slowed to 2.7 % in February from 2.8 % in January, according to data released by the Czech Statistics Office. The slowdown was mainly due to a decline in fuel and oil prices. Month-on-month, consumer prices rose by 0.2 percent in February. Food and non-alcoholic beverages had the biggest impact on the year-on-year price increase in February. Butter was 41.6 percent more expensive than in February last year, while chocolate and chocolate products rose by almost a third. The price of semi-skimmed, long-life milk was 12.3 percent higher year-on-year and eggs were 18.6 percent more expensive.
Hundreds of people had to be evacuated from a district in Brno on Monday evening due to the discovery of an unexploded aerial bomb from WWII. The bomb disposal squad managed to deactivate the 50-kilogram bomb shortly before 8 pm and take it away for safe disposal. The local residents spent two hours in evacuation busses.
Such finds are not uncommon in Brno which was bombed at the end of the Second World War. The industrial city became the target of Allied air raids aimed at strategic sites used by the Nazis.
A 53-year-old Czech skier was killed in an accident in the Austrian Alps on Monday, the AP news agency reported. The incident happened in open terrain shortly after he left a marked ski slope, where he was skiing with his wife and son. The skier reportedly ran into a snow hill, lost control and fell on his head. He succumbed to his injuries on the spot despite the swift arrival of a rescue team by helicopter.
Wednesday should be partly cloudy to overcast, with rain in the western parts of the country and daytime highs between 13 and 17 degrees Celsius.
Top officials met at Prague Castle on Monday to discuss the foreign policy and security developments of Europe and the world. President Pavel acknowledged that Czechia desires a close alliance with the United States, but that Europe must also be prepared for a scenario in which the continent has to rely on itself.
Even after nearly eight decades, the circumstances surrounding the death of Jan Masaryk remain unclear. The son of Czechoslovakia’s first president and the country's top diplomat died on March 10, 1948, just weeks after the Communist coup d’état.
Venezuelan-born Jerina Sykora was named after her Czech grandmother Jiřina, who fled to the South American state in the wake of the 1948 Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia. Jerina herself fled in the other direction; among millions of people who have quit Venezuela due to its political turmoil, she and her family have resettled in Czechia under a government repatriation scheme. Their gripping story is the focus of Volver a Volver, a documentary that will get its premiere at the One World festival in Prague next week.
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