Laden...
Czechia and Bavaria are set to strengthen cooperation in the energy sector, with a focus on energy security and network interconnection, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said after talks with Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder in Prague on Thursday. The two leaders signed a memorandum outlining their plans.
Söder highlighted Bavaria's interest in forming a privileged partnership with Czechia, particularly in the nuclear energy sector. In exchange for nuclear energy supplies, Bavaria is seeking Czech assistance in reactor development, construction, and scientific collaboration.
The leaders also discussed broader energy cooperation, including railway connections and economic relations. Before their talks at the Straka Academy, the two prime ministers visited the Christmas Market in Prague's Old Town Square.
Czech diplomatic staff will return to Syria when the situation allows, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said after a meeting of top Czech officials at Prague Castle. He confirmed that all Czech diplomats had been temporarily withdrawn from Damascus and are currently in Lebanon. Lipavský stressed the importance of protecting Czech citizens abroad and noted that Hayat Tahrir ash-Sham (HTS), now in control of Damascus, remains a terrorist group, and urged caution in future dealings with Syria. Czechia’s top officials met at Prague Castle for the first time since July to discuss foreign policy. In addition to the current volatile situation in Syria, they also discussed the war in Ukraine, and the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip.
Czechia has not opposed Slovakia and Poland's request for a six-month extension of the EU exemption from the ban on Russian oil imports, Prime Minister Petr Fiala said after a meeting of top Czech officials in Prague on Thursday. EU representatives agreed on Wednesday to include the extension in the 15th sanctions package against Russia. Fiala emphasized that the Transalpine Pipeline (TAL) will be fully operational next year, helping Czechia reduce its reliance on Russian oil.
The exemption, which expired on December 5, was not part of the initial proposal but was initiated by Slovakia. Last week, oil supplies from Russia via the Druzhba pipeline were interrupted for two days but were restored on Friday. During that period, Czechia relied solely on the western route. Czechia's oil comes from two main sources: the Russian Druzhba pipeline, which provided 58% of supplies last year, and the German IKL pipeline, connected to the TAL pipeline in Italy.
Czechia will protect Slovak airspace next year, following a bilateral declaration of joint commitment signed on Wednesday by Minister of Defence Jana Černochová and her Slovak counterpart Robert Kaliňák, the Ministry of Defence announced in a press release. Czechia has been participating in the protection of the skies over Slovakia since 2022, when Bratislava retired its Russian-origin MiG-29 fighter jets after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Aircraft from Poland, Hungary and Germany also patrol Slovak airspace.
In July this year, Slovakia received the first two of the 14 F-16 fighters ordered in 2018. Another aircraft is due to follow by the end of the year, but the number is not yet sufficient to protect the country’s airspace fully. According to the Czech ministry, the declaration now includes a reciprocal statement from Slovakia that it will help protect Czech airspace if needed in future.
President Petr Pavel is due to appoint Dita Řepková as a judge of the Constitutional Court on Thursday at Prague Castle. She will replace David Uhlíř, whose term of office ended on Tuesday, on the fifteen-member panel. Ms. Řepková, who specialises in criminal law, was made a judge in April 2008 and previously worked at the Regional Court in Brno.
In November, Ms. Řepková presented herself to the Czech Senate, who approved her nomination as a conservative-minded judge. However, she would not be against the adoption of children by same-sex couples, nor in favour of constitutionally enshrining marriage as a union between a man and a woman. She has spoken out in favour of abolishing the minimum penalty for certain crimes.
The Alice Garrigue Masaryk Human Rights Award, presented by the U.S. Embassy in Prague, was awarded this year to Marie Gailová, chair of the non-profit organization Romodrom. She was honored for her lifelong dedication to defending the rights of the Romani community. U.S. Ambassador Bijan Sabet presented the award during a ceremony on Wednesday, the embassy announced.
The award, named after the eldest daughter of Czechoslovakia's first president, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, was established by the U.S. Embassy in 2004 to recognize outstanding contributions to human rights. It is traditionally awarded near International Human Rights Day on December 10.
Previous recipients include Magda Faltová, Anna Šabatová, and Šimon Pánek.
The documentary Mr. Nobody Against Putin, co-produced by Czech company PINK, will have its world premiere at the upcoming Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Documentary Competition, the Czech News Agency Reported on Thursday.
Directed by David Borenstein, the film offers a glimpse into contemporary Russia through secretly shot footage and narration by Pavel Talankin, a young teacher and co-director.
It will be released in Czech cinemas in March 2025 during the One World Festival, with a distribution premiere date to be announced. The Czech co-producer handled sound and image post-production and played a key role in ensuring the safety of the film's protagonist.
Czech tennis player Jakub Menšík has been named the ATP Newcomer of the Year, becoming only the second Czech player to receive the award, after Jiří Veselý’s win 11 years ago. The 19-year-old from Prostějov edged out China’s Shang Juncheng in the voting.
Menšík enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2024, rising from World No. 167 to a career-best No. 48. His achievements include reaching his first ATP final in Doha, defeating notable players like Andy Murray, Andrey Rublev, and Gaël Monfils. He also claimed victories over Félix Auger-Aliassime and Alexei Popyrin, and battled Novak Djokovic in Shanghai Masters quarter-final.
Next week, Menšík will wrap up his standout season by competing in the Under-21 Tournament of Champions in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Friday will be mostly overcast with low clouds, occasional fog, and frost, while the mountains will see clearer skies. Daytime temperatures will range from -1 to +3°C, dropping to around -4°C at higher elevations.
The Senate has passed an amendment to the gun law that will oblige arms dealers and shooting range owners to report suspicious clients to the police. The measure is a forerunner of a massive overhaul of the gun law that will come into force in 2026, approved in reaction to the tragic shooting at the Prague Faculty of Arts almost exactly a year ago.
Let us take you on a culinary tour of Czech Christmas, by introducing the world of ‘cukroví’ – traditional sweet treats that families in Czechia bake every year, and are for many Czechs the very best taste of Christmas.
On the 12th of December 1952, a senior academic died in Prague. This lifelong scholar was Bedřich Hrozný, a Czech man born in the Bohemian town of Lysá nad Labem, and he remains famous today for his work on ancient languages. Most notably, it was thanks to him that the first translations of the lost language of the Hittites were not into English or French, but Czech. To understand the genius and the legacy of Hrozný, Danny Bate spoke to Krishnan Ram-Prasad, a scholar of Hittite and other languages of antiquity at the University of Oxford.
On Thursday, Czech Radio Vltava will premiere the documentary Postscriptum of Bedřich Smetana. Created by Tomáš Dufka, head of the radio archive, the project examines pivotal political and social events, such as the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, through the lens of Smetana's music, which left a powerful legacy after the composer's death. The documentary uses dozens of newly discovered materials from the Czech Radio archive, among other sources.
This e-mail is sent to you automatically according to the settings you chose. To change the settings, click here.
© 2024, Radio Prague International - the external service of Czech Radio, all rights reserved.
https://english.radio.cz, e-mail: [email protected], Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Instagram
Laden...
Laden...
