AuthorMartin Hladík

Photo: Ondřej Tomšů, Radio Prague International

Historian Mark Cornwall is an expert on Czech-German relations. He is preparing a book to be entitled Queer Bohemians and another on treason under the Habsburg Empire.

Listen here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Trams ran up and down Prague’s Wenceslas Square in the past and are set to do so again. This plan has now taken another step forward, with the city’s transport authority issuing a public tender to build the necessary lines, Novinky.cz reported.

Construction work should begin next year and the commission also includes an overall overhaul of the city’s main thoroughfare, the news website said.

The new tram lines are intended to connect the Vinohrady and New Town districts of the Czech capital.

Whereas previously trams ran in the very centre of Wenceslas Square, the plan is for them to operate on the roads that are currently there, Novinky.cz said.

The roads will be divided between cars and trams, architect Vladimír Vacek said in the past. The centre of the square will be given over to a 15 metre wide pedestrian zone.

The tracks should not complicate traffic even on the main “magistrála” through road that runs in front of and behind the National Museum.

Read the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Photo: Stanislav Zbyněk, ČTK

Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away on Thursday, is fondly remembered by many Czechs. Not least thanks to her visit to the country in March 1996, when she met with the then president Václav Havel and chatted with locals on Charles Bridge. One of those who met with the monarch several times during his career is the former Czech ambassador to the UK Michael Žantovský.

“I met her for the first time in March 1990 when I came to London with Václav Havel, whom she invited for lunch. She impressed me already then as a very likeable and very kind human being.

“In our subsequent meetings, when she came to Prague in 1996 and later when I served in London as ambassador, she only reinforced that impression in me. I admired her enormously.”

How important do you think the visit of the Queen to Czechia was for Czechs and for relations between the two countries? I understand that the queen would only do a limited amount of state visits per year, so I guess it was quite rare?

“Of course. And it was a reflection, I think, of the high esteem in which she held Václav Havel who impressed her enormously during their first meeting.

“Actually, 20 years later, when I handed to her my credentials as ambassador, she remembered in verbatim the details of that meeting and we recalled it together. That is an amazing feat considering how many visitors and heads of state she saw in the meantime.

“I think that she was a beacon of Czech-British relations. I hope that her successor will continue in the same vein.”

See the rest here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

The Slovak Ambassador to Czech Republic, H.E. Rastislav Káčer has been appointed as the new Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia. We wish him all the best in his new role!

You can read more about this in a post published by Mr. Káčer (in Slovak)

A new book called „Youth Without Family to Lean On“ edited by Moshe Israelashvili and Shula Mozes will be published by Routledge on September 20, 2022. The book is in English, and attempts to give a comprehensive description of interventions in the field, and its development, in many places all over the world.

More details, and the possibility to order on-line – www.routledge.com/9780367645038

Book Description

Youth Without Family to Lean On draws together interdisciplinary, global perspectives to provide a comprehensive review of the characteristics, dynamics, and development of youth (aged 15–25) who have no family to lean on, either practically or psychologically.

In this timely volume, Mozes and Israelashvili bring together leading international experts to present updated knowledge, information on existing interventions, and unanswered questions in relation to youth without family to lean on, in pursuit of fostering these youth’s positive development. The various chapters in this book include discussions on different topics such as social support, developing a sense of belonging, parental involvement, and internalized vs. externalized problems; on populations, including homeless youth, residential care-leavers, refugees, asylum-seekers, young women coming from vulnerable families, and school dropouts; and interventions to promote these youths’ mentoring relationships, labor market attainment, out-of-home living placements, use of IT communication, and participation in community-based programs. Additionally, various problems and challenges are presented and elaborated on, such as: Who needs support? Who is qualified to provide support? How should related interventions be developed? The book takes a preventive approach and aims to emphasize steps that can be taken in order to promote young people’s positive development in spite of the absence of a family to rely on in their life and examines the best practices in this context, as well as the international lessons that deserve further dissemination and exploration.

This book is essential reading for those in psychology, sociology, public health, social work, law, criminology, public policy, economics, and education and is highly enriching for scholars and practitioners, as well as higher education students, who wish to understand and help the gradually increasing number of youth who are forced, too early, to manage their life alone.

Biography

Shula Mozes is a social entrepreneur. In 2001, she founded the “Lamerhav” program for young adults who lack family support, and in 2015, she launched “iota”, a social business striving to design beautiful hand-knitted furniture while creating jobs for otherwise unemployed people worldwide and preserving this craft.

Moshe Israelashvili, Professor Emeritus, School of Education, Tel Aviv University. His studies focus on adjustment, coping, and resilience. He has published and co-edited several books, including: The Cambridge Handbook of International Prevention Science (2017) and Education in the Arab Society in Israel (2020).

Foto: Deml Ondřej, ČTK

Hana Zagorová, one of the country’s most popular singers and a nine-time winner of the Golden Nightingale award died last week at the age of 75. In today’s edition of Sunday Music show we mark her long and successful career, during which she released dozens of albums and recorded almost 900 songs.

Hana Zagorová was born on September 6, 1946, in a small village of Petřkovice on the outskirts of Ostrava. She first came into the spotlight at the age of 17, when she participated in a local singing competition called Searching for New Talents.

Five years later, she graduated from the acting department at the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno. In the late 1960s, Hana Zagorová started to appear regilarly on television and performed with the band Flamingo and the Sodoma-Gomorrah ensemble.

She also began collaborating with the Václav Zahradník Orchestra, with whom she recorded her first album Bludička, released in 1970, featuring her first major hit, Bludička Julie.

After moving to Prague in the early 1970s, Zagorová began recording with the Dance Orchestra of Czechoslovak Radio and between 1972 and 1974, she starred as a guest performer at the legendary Semafor Theatre.

Her popularity with listeners continued to grow. In 1974 and 1975, she came third in the Golden Nightingale music competition, followed by second place in 1976. From 1977, she won the competition nine times in a row. She started to perform with her own band, and at the end of the decade she held several concerts across Czechoslovakia with the popular Italian singer Drupi.

Read the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Photo: Ian Willoughby, Radio Prague International

Prague’s graffiti-covered John Lennon Wall was a symbol of freedom in the final decade of communism. Now it has been repainted by artists from all around Europe in a project that is part of the Czech presidency of the EU.

Over two dozen artists from all around the European Union created new images all over Prague landmark the John Lennon Wall on Wednesday.

Among the artists, who ranged in age from 19 to 61, was this young man.

“The Freedom Wall project is a collaborative project with all the member states, and they have two special guests: Norway and Ukraine.

“My name is Hugo Lami and I’m from Portugal.

“I’m doing a painting of an astronaut with planet Earth as a crystal ball, because for me space is freedom, as it has no borders and it belongs to all of us.”

Read the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Devastating floods have hit Pakistan, submerging 1/3rd of the country underwater that’s roughly the land mass of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called this a “climate catastrophe“.Entire villages have been cut off; road and rail infrastructure washed away, with rescuers struggling to reach stranded people. Some 3 million children and 70,000 pregnant women are in desperate need of food and shelter.

Vast areas of cultivated lands have been affected meaning many people are likely to go hungry in the longer term. Water-borne diseases are rapidly spreading putting at risk children, pregnant women and the elderly.

The government of Pakistan and aid agencies are working 24/7 responding to people’s basic needs such as food, clean water and shelter. The government of Pakistan has called for international assistance to provide humanitarian aid.

Your donation of

• KC 250 could provide essential hygiene supplies for two people
• KC 750 could provide emergency shelter for one family
• KC 1500 could provide emergency food for one family for a month

DONATE

Bank transfer: CSOB – Emb. of Pakistan Flood Relief Fund; Acct # 266 760 090/0300; please add your email while transferring funds

Credit Card donation: https://e-payment.nbp.com.pk

Thank You.

The so-called roundel, built around 7,000 years ago, is located in the district of Vinoř on the outskirts of Prague, Photo: Labrys

Archaeologists in Prague are currently uncovering a monumental building from the Stone Age. The so-called roundel, built around 7,000 years ago, is located in the district of Vinoř on the outskirts of the city. Experts are hoping that the research will reveal more information about these mysterious ancient structures.

Roundels are large circular structures from the Neolithic period, that were constructed between 4600–4900 BC. That makes them the oldest monumental buildings in Europe, far older than the Egyptian pyramids or England’s Stonehenge.

One such roundel is currently being examined in Prague’s district of Vinoř. So far, research has shown that the structure is exceptionally well-preserved. Archaeologists were surprised to discover intact remains of the palisade troughs into which the central wooden structure was originally embedded.

Read the rest here.

Authors: Ruth Fraňková, Štěpán Sedláček

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. Dr J Scott Younger is a President Commissioner at Glendale Partners and member of IFIMES Advisory Board. In his text entitled “Putin’s War, Extended“ he is writing about war in Ukraine and what can the world expect from Putin and Russia.

Putin’s War, Extended

This has been going on for 6 months now and the last period has been almost a stalemate. However, there have been other events taking place elsewhere, particularly in the case of China. They were very angry with the US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, a senior member of the administration, deigning to visit Taiwan against their wishes. They threw a tantrum and gave a military demonstration of their short-term aim to absorb the island which they consider as a breakaway province, in no way an independent country.

The countries of the area have been alerted and are concerned over China’s belligerence and apparent ambitions. Xi Jinping still believes that the western Pacific is his playground to control. Like Putin’s Russia with Ukraine, he is declaring his hand for all to see his goals before he is quite ready. A difference between China and Russia is in the size of military that can be mustered by each of these two authoritarian states, which have killed more than 32 million of their people in the past in trying to make them follow a strict communist path. Free will?

Mikhail Gorbachev (to Putin’s disgust) first acknowledged openly, at the end of the 1980s, that the path that the Soviet Union was treading was unsustainable, particularly in the manner in which the Soviets were trying to keep up militarily with the US. He was responsible for a change of direction manifest in the symbolic bringing down of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the freedom given to the nations absorbed at the end of WWII into the Soviet ‘empire’. He didn’t last long, giving was to Boris Yeltsin in 1992.

Boris Yeltsin tried to open up the economy, not realising that it was difficult, if not impossible, to make the changes needed in a short time. In addition, the mood of change was welcomed by the oligarchs, who controlled a significant part of the economy and had found ways to circumvent the rules set by the strict authority of the Soviet regime, like underworld bosses. Yeltsin didn’t know how to deal with this and quarrelled with his colleagues, changing his cabinet four times before advancing illness caused him to retire, along with government pressure. He then passed the reigns to Putin, who had been well trained by the KGB.

Russia today, with Vladimir Putin in charge, demonstrates most of the hallmarks of KGB government – disinformation and misinformation, strict control of the airwaves, no dissent, no freedom of expression, ‘do as you are told’, interference with other governments, and so on. It is no wonder that the people of the country that gave us such music giants, as Brahms and Tchaikovsky and peers of literature as Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and Chekhov, are running away. It is reported that the number is in the six figures. Putin has failed to realise that the world he grew up in has changed and is changing further. The world faces serious problems. The communist world of Stalin, his mentor, is no more. He cannot win the war he started unless the west give up their support, which they have pledged not to do, at whatever cost.

The Quest for the Territory and for the Nuclear Power Plant

The war in Ukraine has come to a halt in terms of territory gained or lost. There is desultory shelling going on as each side tries to reactivate its army. The Ukrainians at last have some long-range weapons which they have used to telling effect on Crimea. However, they need a lot more and soon. They have been promised from the US government and delivery is awaited. It is understood that the Ukrainians are preparing to take back the important southern city of Kherson but will need more adequately equipped forces and weapons to do that. Meanwhile, Putin is calling for an additional 10,000 troops; perhaps that is in response to that. Whatever, each side is preparing for a long engagement, as neither side can afford to back down, In Ukraine’s case because it wants its territory back and in Russia’s because it has to show some gains from its ‘special military operation’.

The one point of world anxiety, however, is the safety of the nuclear plant at Zaporizhzhia, which lies at the edge of Russian held territory on the R Dnieper, as memories are still fresh at what happened at Chernobyl where there was a melt down and escape of radiation. The missile bombing war is still too close to the nuclear plant. It is in Russian hands and finally they have agreed to UN requests to allow access to UN inspectors, provided that they only pass through Russian controlled lines. Meanwhile the Russians have cut off the supply that was going from the plant to Ukraine.

One other point of speculation is what happens if and when Putin goes. Is there a Russia to deal with that is not completely under the control of acolytes brainwashed with Putin thoughts of Russian entitlement. It will be difficult to deal with a country absorbed in thinking of their past, when there are more critical world issues of concern, such as climate. Russia, which controls a very significant part of the globe, must join in with the solutions.

About the author:

Dr J Scott Younger, OBE, is a professional civil engineer; he spent 42 years in the Far East undertaking assignments in 10 countries for WB, ADB, UNDP. He published many papers; he was a columnist for Forbes Indonesia and Globe Asia. He served on British & European Chamber boards and was a Vice Chair of Int’l Business Chamber for 17 years. His expertise is infrastructure and sustainable development and he takes an interest in international affairs. He is an International Chancellor of the President University, Indonesia. He is a member of IFIMES Advisory Board. Lived and worked in Thailand from 1978 to 1983 and visited Burma, Bangladesh and Nepal for projects.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect IFIMES official position.

Ljubljana/Glasgow, 28 August 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.

Pork crackling spread, or škvarková pomazánka, is a side dish you are sure to find in nearly every Czech pub. The spread, made of ground pork cracklings, lard and finely chopped onion, is usually served on a slice of bread. While not exactly a healthy choice, it does taste rather delicious, especially when paired with a cold glass of beer.

Pork meat is the foundation of many Czech traditional dishes, including roast pork knee or vepřo knedlo zelo – pork roast with dumplings and sauerkraut, considered to be the Czech national meal.

One of the smaller delicacies made of pork lard are škvarky or cracklings, the by-product of rendering lard. What remains at the end of the process of melting pork fat are pieces of meat that have been fried until brown and crispy.

Cracklings can be eaten on their own, or salted or seasoned with spices, but most Czechs prefer to make them into a delicious spread, known as škvarková pomazánka.

Although not strictly a Czech meal, pork crackling spread enjoys great popularity in Czechia and is a staple item on the menus of both high-end and low-end restaurants and pubs.

Read more here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Jewish athlete Kurt Epstein played on the Czechoslovak water polo team and represented the country at two Olympic Games, including the 1936 “Nazi Olympics” in Berlin. Epstein is the subject of a new exhibition set to open at the Terezín Ghetto Museum next week. It has been put together by his daughter Helen Epstein, who previously wrote a book about him entitled A Jewish Athlete: Swimming Against Stereotype in 20th Century Europe. The author spoke to me from her home in the US.

Your father was from Roudnice nad Labem. What do we know about his family background in that town?

“His family was one of the oldest families of Roudnice, which itself is one of the oldest settlements of Jews in the Czech lands.

“There were four of these outside of Prague, and Roudnice was one of them.

“His family were tanners, which is one of the traditional Jewish occupations in Central Europe.

“By the time my father was born his father was one of the most prominent manufacturers in Roudnice; he had a leather factory.

“That factory was in ruins for many years and now there’s a Czech family building a multi-family dwelling on that property.

“And the house that my grandfather built in 1900 is now the Podřipské Museum.”

See the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Photo: Sekyra Group

Several streets in Prague’s new district of Smíchov City, which is currently under construction, are to be named after women who contributed to freedom, democracy and the fight against totalitarianism.

The main pedestrian boulevard that will run through the 20-hectare neighbourhood will bear the name of Madeleine Albright, the former US secretary of state, who was born in Smíchov.

There are currently around 7,500 streets in the Czech capital, with roughly a quarter being named after historical figures, but only around a tenth of those are women.

To improve the gender balance, the developer Sekyra group, along with the Václav Havel Library, proposed to name the streets in the newly created district after notable women.

Apart from Madeleine Albright, whose name should also appear on the newly built elementary school, other famous women to get their own streets include the surrealist painter Toyen, sociologist and feminist Jiřina Šiklová, art collector Meda Mládková, German philosopher Hannah Arendt and the resistance fighter Růžena Vacková, as well as Alice and Anna Masaryk, daughter and granddaughter of the first Czechoslovak president.

Read the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Every good entrepreneur has a few tricks up his or her sleeves. There are far too many challenges that come when running a business and that is why it is important to implement reliable methods that you can always leverage no matter the situation. Most people call these hacks, as they let you approach a problem much more easily. Hacks can come in a variety of ways whether that is through the use of technology or building clever habits. There is not a professional out there who hasn’t recognized his or her own inefficiencies while handling a business. There is always something that could’ve been done better or finished more quickly. In order to thrive and not just survive in the modern work environment, you will definitely need these business hacks.

Go digital

By far the most important thing that sets good entrepreneurs from the bad ones is the way they are able to communicate with their clients. We live in a time where the exchange of information is crucial. Never before have there been so many technological opportunities to communicate even more efficiently, no matter the location. Good entrepreneurs leverage this heavily and they upgrade their businesses with many technological solutions. The best place to start is to get a website with a professional personal domain name. This is going to give your business a central platform where people can interact with your brand, make purchases and share links with others. You can fine pick the features that you want your website to have depending on your business type. Make no mistake, there are no successful non-digital businesses, since more than 62% of businesses have increased their digital marketing budgets within a course of a single year.

There are no failures, just results

One of the biggest mental hacks you can use to make the most impact on your business right now is to completely change the way you think about running your business. This doesn’t mean that you should change any of the core features of your business, but rather you should upgrade your mindset. The fact is that our brains are wired to think more easily about negative things, which is good for avoiding danger. However, running a business is not just about surviving, avoiding danger and making it to another day. It is about growing exponentially. This requires you to treat every bit of your entrepreneurial journey as a lesson. A good approach to take is to think of failures as results, without assigning any value judgments to them. When you get into the habit of doing this you will become more resourceful and you will be able to see more opportunities. The bottom line is that what you say to yourself when things get tough is really important because you get to decide if you want to learn and improve or simply poison your mind and attitude with negative thoughts.

Implement good boundaries

In order to play the long game and maintain a steady pace you will need to learn how to take time out for yourself. Many entrepreneurs are fiercely driven, but they lack clear boundaries and they burn out quickly. That is why it is important to take some strategic time off every now and then. This will help you recover both physically and mentally and let you come back stronger and ready to act with new amazing ideas and breakthroughs.

Grow by networking

One of the best ways to learn new things is to model others. This can save you decades of learning, simply because you can surround yourself with amazing people and then learn from them. There is always someone who is going to be more experienced than you and that is where the real value is found. When you are willing to genuinely listen to others, you might learn something valuable that you don’t yet know.

Find your approach

The overarching principle for implementing any business hacks is that you have to regulate how you act and take a look at the bigger picture. This means that you should develop skills and ways of thinking that are going to work for you. Yes, modelling is a great tool for learning new things from others while saving time, but you must not lose yourself in the process. Once you find something that works for you try to stick to it and remember that 80% percent of results come from 20% of the things that you do.

The ultimate way to improve your business is to implement effective hacks such as shifting your mindset, going digital, growing your network, maintaining good work-life balance and sticking to things that actually work for you. With these you will solve entrepreneurial problems in no time.

By Peter Minkoff

Peter is a lifestyle and travel writer at Men-Ual magazine, living between Ústí nad Labem and Antwerp. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

Photo: Libor Plíhal, ČTK

Two works of art have just been unveiled as part of the event Tribute to the Baroque Period (Pocta baroku), marking 300 years of the consecration of the pilgrimage church of St. John of Nepomuk on the mountain Zelená hora by Žďár nad Sázavou in Vysočina. The church is the work of the famous sculptor Jan Blažej Santini. One of the artworks is a fountain made of 50 fire hose nozzles and coloured floodlights on a local pond.

Source

Close to 77 percent of schoolchildren in Czechia take their lunch in school eateries, according to the results of a survey conducted by Scolarest, a school food focused company that belongs to global catering conglomerate Compass Group.

Visiting school eateries is most popular in the Vysočina Region, where over 93 percent of children make use of the option. Meanwhile, the lowest number of pupils who eat their lunch at school is in Prague, where just 48 percent of respondents said they did so. The most common reason put for why children do not visit school eateries was because they eat their lunches at home. Close to a fifth of respondents who don’t eat at schools said that this was because they did not like the food served there. Close to 13 percent said that they did not eat at school for financial reasons.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Source

Photo: Dagmar Heřtová, Czech Radio

It is hard to dispute the fact that traditional Czech cuisine is very carnivorous. With the exception of desserts, most Czech food classics are meaty, filling dishes, such as vepřoknedlozelo (dumplings with sauerkraut and pork), svíčková (marinated sirloin), or španělské ptáčky (beef rolls). But there is one lighter, vegetarian dish that you are sure to find in nearly every Czech pub.

When looking to order a snack in a pub in Prague or any other Czech town, a good choice might be “nakládaný hermelín”, or pickled hermelín. Although it is served drenched in oil, this dish is lighter than most Czech foods. It is therefore ideal as quick refreshment for an active day of sightseeing or as a tasty bite to go with your Pilsner. It is also often one of the only meatless options on the menu in traditional Czech bars.

The eponymous hermelín is a Czech cheese that originated in the 1920s as a Bohemian imitation of the French camembert. In the years since, it has become a staple of Czech cuisine that can be grilled, fried or filled with vegetables. But hermelín is perhaps most often prepared in its pickled form, which is almost ubiquitous in Czech pubs and restaurants. It is usually served with bread and, of course, beer. Roman Paulus, one of Czechia’s most successful chefs, told Czech Radio that there is not one “correct” way to make nakládaný hermelín.

See the rest here.

Due to the interconnected nature of the contemporary world, it is not realistic for Czechia to pursue food self-sufficiency, Prime Minister Petr Fiala said in his Thursday speech at the opening of the countries annual agricultural fair Země živitelka in České Budějovice. Instead, the prime minister said, the country should focus on food security, for example in the form of maintaining a steady food reserve.

Mr Fiala said that the damage to Czech agriculture, caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, can currently only be estimated. While production costs are rising, this is also partly offset by growing demand for agricultural products abroad, he said.

Several leading political figures attended the agricultural fair. Among them, President Miloš Zeman, who called for the setting of maximum prices on energy across the European Union, and former head of state Václav Klaus, who criticised recent governments for the current rate of inflation in the country, which is among the highest in the EU.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Source

On Wednesday, the Czech government passed the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s proposal for the subsidies that households are set to receive to compensate their energy costs this year. The “savings tariff”, as the subsidy is commonly referred to in Czech media, will kick in in October and lie at an average of CZK 15,000 for the upcoming heating season, with households receiving roughly CZK 4,000 this year.

The government is currently in the process of preparing a “savings calculator” for the public, which should enable people to estimate how much financial support their household will be able to claim.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Source

Czechia and Ukraine are preparing an agreement on joint cooperation in the realm of education which should be signed this autumn, Czechia’s Education Minister Vladimír Balaš said on Thursday during his visit to Ukraine. The agreement should include guidelines on how both countries will cooperate in education and teaching.

Although their numbers are smaller than was initially expected, thousands of Ukrainian children have been signed up for the upcoming Czech academic school year, following the wave of refugees arriving from the country. Mr Balaš said that special Ukrainian classes will be set up in some schools. The Ukrainian side is also interested in the setting up of so-called Ukrainian Saturday schools, news site DeníkN.cz reports. Special centres where Ukrainian students will be able to take their home country’s exams will be set up in Prague and Brno.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Source

Being inclusive in your workplace goes beyond hiring people with disabilities—it includes their total integration so they can show their 100% potential and strengths. No matter if visible or invisible their disability, integration in the workplace allows everyone the same opportunities to succeed, improve, earn money and advance in their career. So how can you help your coworkers with disabilities with integration?

Identify and adjust hiring processes

It is possible that your recruiting and hiring processes are not so suitable for people with disabilities. Are they discouraging people with disabilities from applying or are they limiting them from showing their full potential? For instance, in Microsoft, they noticed that people with autism rarely applied for job positions and even more rarely got hired, despite having the skills and qualifications needed. They discovered that the issue was the interview process many autistic people didn’t like or excel at. To allow proper integration, managers removed the interview and replaced it with exercises that test skills and teamwork. This allows the Microsoft team to give the same opportunities to all candidates, regardless of their weaknesses and strengths. Apply this example to your hiring, training and development processes and they will make a big difference.

Strengthen the bond with the community

Identifying the candidates can be just as hard for companies as hiring people with disabilities. Why is that so? Well, mostly due to connection issues. In many cases, people with disabilities might not be willing to apply for jobs because they think they won’t get them, so their talents ever even get to you. To fix this issue, it’s important to engage with organizations and groups that support people with disabilities and create a good bond in the community.

Offer incentives and financial help

In many cases, people with disabilities can’t apply for a job or hold employment due to various financial issues. Often going to work and dedicating time to tasks takes too much time, preventing people with disabilities from attending work. One thing companies can do for their workers with disabilities is offer financial help or provide workers with special cars. This allows people with disabilities to join a local independent living facility and move closer to work. These facilities are affordable with government and employer incentives and very practical for all people with disabilities. It’s also possible to provide disabled workers with special vehicles so they can do their commute much easier.

Investing in workplace modifications

To provide all workers with equal accessibility, it’s important to perform certain modifications to the workplace. Things like including adjustable desks and chairs in the workplace, creating accessible pathways and amenities, as well as providing workers with flexible hours are crucial for integration. There are government incentives for these workplace modifications, so there are no reasons why not to do them.

Include people with disabilities in social events

The idea behind integration is to look beyond regulations and compliance—it’s crucial to take a holistic approach and create a workplace that’s truly welcoming. Including people with disabilities in every part of company life is crucial for integration. Proper inclusion results in better morale, better productivity, stronger loyalty and lower turnover.

Help employees understand the challenges

In order to create an environment that allows all employees to show off their best sides, it’s necessary to educate employees on each other’s needs. All employees, no matter if they are able-bodied or live with a disability, should go through training that will help them understand and empathize with others. This reduces the stigma behind disability and creates better bonds between colleagues. Through training, people will learn about tools and accommodations people have at their disposal and encourage everyone to go searching for better solutions for integration.

A company that’s full of diverse people has all the strengths to tackle issues and get sympathy from consumers. Hiring and welcoming people with disabilities into your company should be your number one task that will bring a world of good returns.

By Peter Minkoff

Peter is a lifestyle and travel writer at Men-Ual magazine, living between Ústí nad Labem and Antwerp. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

Tatarský biftek or tatarák, is the Czech version of steak tartare, a dish made of fresh, minced raw beef seasoned with salt, pepper and other ingredients. Although tatarák is not strictly a Czech meal, it enjoys huge popularity in Czechia and is one of the staples on the menus of many a pub or restaurant.

According to legend, steak tartar originated in 13th century Mongolia, where Tatar warriors would ride their horses with raw meat hidden under their saddles.

The modern version of beef tartare, as we know it today, was popularised in French restaurants in the 19th century. It was served under the name “À la tartare”, which means “served with tartar sauce”, but gradually, the word started to refer to the raw steak itself rather than to the sauce.

Today steak tartare is eaten all over the world, but, for reasons unknown, it is particularly popular in Czechia. Tatarák, as Czechs call it, is usually made of beef tenderloin, which is finely chopped or minced.

The meat is served in the shape of a burger, often with raw egg yolk on top, and a variety of other ingredients, such as finely chopped onions or Worcester sauce.

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Photo: Odien Real Estate

A site in Prague that was previously home to a major truck factory should become a whole new district in the coming decades. The site in the north-east of the city will be named after the Avia brand associated with it, Czech Television reported.

Avia trucks were produced for many decades where the Prague districts of Letňany and Čakovice meet. However, following the revolution the previously successful company was bought by a Korean firm, which went bankrupt.

Truck production at the site wound down and was eventually discontinued altogether, Czech TV said.

Today the 66-hectare complex, which includes 140 different buildings, is in a decrepit state. Experts are assessing which structures can be saved on the brownfield site.

Read more here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Photo: Barbora Němcová, Radio Prague International

Les Královstí or Forest Kingdom reservoir was built on the Elbe River in 1920, taking its name from an old border forest that runs along its left bank. Due to its unique architectural design, it has become a popular tourist destination.

The construction of the waterworks was triggered by the extensive floods that often plagued the region at the foothills of the Krkonoše or Giant Mountains. The most devastating one came on July 29, 1897, hitting two thirds of Bohemia, part of Moravia and Silesia, as well as part of Austria and Germany. The rising torrents of the Elbe and the Úpa Rivers damaged many villages in the Giant Mountains, killing 102 people.

In response to the disaster, the central government of the Austro-Hungarian Empire decided to regulate the waterways in the Czech lands and initiated the construction of two valley dams in the upper reaches of the Elbe. One of the dams was built at Krausovy Budy below Špindlerův mlýn and the other above Dvůr Králové in Těšnov.

The construction of the Forest Kingdom reservoir, also known as the Těšnovská dam or Bílá Třemešné dam, began in 1910 on the basis of a project led by Josef Plicka and its cost amounted to 4.7 million Austrian crowns. The dam was completed in 1920 and became the largest water reservoir in what was then Czechoslovakia.

See the rest here.

Prague was the most badly affected of all the Czech cities hit by the large-scale natural disaster. Several neighbourhoods were flooded and metro stations, monuments and a part of the zoo all ended up underwater.

It rained for days and the Czech Hydro-meteorological Institute warned of further persistent rainfall. South Bohemia was hit by storms with torrential downpours and the already full river basin could not take in any more water.

On July 7, the first rivers in south Bohemia began to overflow. A catastrophe was approaching, the likes of which the present generation had never experienced before. The huge floods swept through southern Bohemia and into Germany.

The floods changed the life of the capital

In Prague, the river overflowed a week later, the current flowing at a rate of over 5,000 cubic metres of water per second. Water resource managers said they were the worst floods in 500 years. Parts of the city were without electricity and the metro stopped running. 50,000 people were evacuated and buildings including the Statistical Office and the National Library found themselves under water.

See the rest here.

The Czech Ministry of Education has recently sparked a debate with a proposal to make the learning of a second language in Czech primary schools voluntary rather than compulsory as it is at present. While many teachers have welcomed the idea, a group of foreign diplomats to Czechia have openly spoken against it. Among them is German ambassador to Prague Andreas Künne, who explained his position to Radio Prague International.

“I am convinced that every language you speak really is a window into a new world, into a new way of thinking and the more languages you speak, the richer you are as an individual. “Obviously I agree that it is necessary that everyone speaks English. Yet even in today’s Europe you won’t get very far with just English in many places.

“English might be enough to get something to eat as a tourist, but if you want to understand anything about how others think and why they are doing what they are doing, you will need to make an effort at learning their language.

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

The International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES)[1] from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyzes developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. IFIMES made an analysis of the current situation in Serbia in the context of strengthening of its foreign policy and affirmation of the international status of the country. We bring the most important and interesting parts of the extensive analysis titled “2022 Serbia: Strengthening of foreign policy and affirmation of international status.”

2022 Serbia:

Strengthening of foreign policy and affirmation of international status

The Nonalignment Movement (NAM) summit organized from 11 October to 12 October in Belgrade, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of establishment of the Movement was the largest multilateral event in Europe and one of the largest events in the world in 2021. The group of Nonalignment Movement member countries is the most numerous group within the framework of the UN General Assembly in New York. The Movement is important for Serbia because many of its member countries have not recognized Kosovo. Over the past two decades superpowers have frequently tried through different ways to bypass the key role of the UN in the world and pursued the path of unilateralism while ignoring the UN. On the other side, the NAM advocates multilateralism, territorial integrity of the states and inviolability of borders.

Analysts believe that the organization of the Nonalignment Movement summit in Belgrade in 2021 was a strategic move by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić with far-reaching effects that will contribute to stronger positioning of Serbia in international relations and particularly with the NAM group of countries, Islamic-Arab world and Middle East countries. All this is a part of the policy of rebranding of Serbia on the international and regional level. This will create a window for different forms of cooperation, not just political, which is of exceptional important for Serbia, but also economic, scientific and cultural cooperation, as well as exchange of experiences, etc.

The recent visit by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is, inter alia, a result of bigger and stronger role that Serbia now has in international relations and the policy Serbia has pursued over the past few years. Namely, after the dissolution of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) this segment of international relations had been neglected.

Egyptian President visits Belgrade after 35 years

The continuous strengthening of the international role and position of Serbia is an illustration of the relevance of the last year’s summit of the Nonalignment Movement in Belgrade and its outcome. A testimony of this are also the numerous visits by senior foreign officials to Serbia.

The recent visit by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi carries strong symbolism, as this is the first time after 35 years that a President of Egypt, as the biggest and an important Arab state, particularly for peace and stability in the Middle East and the Mediterranean region, has visited Belgrade. Egypt is one of the founders of the Nonalignment movement.

In the context of tectonic changes in international relations, former United Kingdom Prime Minister Tony Blair[2] recently stated “the era of Western political and economic dominance was coming to an end.“

Analysts believe that Serbia is keeping its ear on the ground and closely watching the global developments and trends, as well as pursuing a carefully designed, planned and long-term foreign policy in order to better position and rebrand itself within the framework of the Nonalignment Movement as well as with the Islamic-Arab world and the Middle East. Serbia has managed to strengthen its relations with that part of the world as no other country in the region has and can also serve as an example to many far more powerful countries in Europe.

The general trend is that the power is moving from the West towards the East, which orients countries such as Serbia to develop in a balance manner their relations not just with EU and the US, but also with Russia and China. This is particularly necessary in light of the relation of the EU to the Western Balkan states in the context of the enlargement process, which is become increasingly uncertain. Development of friendships with other states should be a priority of all the states and their foreign policies.

“All this calls for a return to the genuine principles of the African Union (AU), Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), League of Arab States (LAS) and other similar mechanisms, but even more for reconsideration and revival of the best aspects of the Nonalignment Movement (NAM), which had saved the world from former irresponsible actions and frictions between two opposing blocks which engaged in conflicts all over the world for decades.”[3]

Open Balkan important for each country individually and the region

The Open Balkan initiative emerged as an idea to address the real needs of citizens of Western Balkan countries and is aimed to improve economic and every other relations in the region. It is common knowledge that 70-80% of trade in goods is done at the regional level, which is why such an emphasis has been put on regional cooperation.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, then North Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama had realized this. At the same time, it is important that Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Kosovo also join the Open Balkan initiative. It is expected that the countries that have not yet joined the Open Balkan initiative would present arguments to explain their opposition to the idea, particularly bearing in mind the allegations about great-Serbia and great-Albania ambitions being behind the Open Balkan initiative. If the countries in the region do not tap the enormous potential for cooperation someone else will. The initiative is primarily about the economy of scale, removal of various administrative barriers, various synergy effects and, maybe even most importantly, about all countries in the region speaking with one voice to the EU, just as the Visegrad group of countries has done and is still doing. We have to draw on global experiences which indicate that no single country was able to achieve economic development without having harmonious relations with its neighbors. There can be no progress without creation of the culture of unity. Citizens of the Western Balkans have come to realize this, particularly the business community. Therefore, the high percentage of support of the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Kosovo to the Open Balkan initiative is of no surprise, because they all want to improve their standard of living and regional cooperation. This is why cooperation is key for each country individually and the region.

Analysts believe that the Open Balkan initiative is a regional initiative for the 21st century, because it will eliminate border controls and other barriers and thus facilitate movement (of people, goods, capital and services) in the region. If there are already regional initiatives such as the Nordic Council (established in 1952), Visegrad Group, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), ASEAN, etc. it is difficult to dispute the requirement for existence of the Open Balkan project. Furthermore, regional cooperation within these integrations clearly confirms and proves that such initiatives are the cornerstone for understanding, progress and cooperation. The fundamental principles of the European Union (EU) encourage neighborly and regional cooperation. The Open Balkan initiative is a basic illustration of such future-oriented policy. The Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the current energy and food crisis in the world, has demonstrated in practice what mutual cooperation and solidarity means. Exchange of experiences and assistance among the countries in the region is necessary in the EU integration process as well. Researches show (in figures) that all will benefit from the Open Balkan initiative, which, after all, is the most important thing.

Serbia – engine of European integration in the Balkans

Serbia is key for stability and peace in the region, as well as the engine of European integration of all six Western Balkan countries. The statements of the new Government of the Republic of Serbia that it will rule with new energy and will undergo major personnel changes, put a bigger focus on European integration and will be more multiethnic than ever before are encouraging.

Assessments by key international factors indicate that Serbia is the epicenter for normalization of relations in the Western Balkans, as well as the engine of European integration of Western Balkan countries. The progress of Serbia towards membership in the EU has been particularly intensified over the past several years. Serbia has the strongest and most developed human resources and logistic infrastructure with which it can respond to the challenges of the negotiations process in a relatively short period of time and establish itself as the engine of European integration in the Western Balkans.

Relations with Russia– opportunity and challenge

Serbia is in a specific situation when it comes to the requests that the international community sets to it. The EU requests from Serbia to recognize Kosovo, while simultaneously the EU cannot force five of its members to recognize Kosovo. Specifically, Spain, Slovakia, Romania, Cyprus and Greece. EU requests of Serbia to introduce sanctions against Russia because of the invasion on Ukraine, although Serbia had condemned the Russian invasion in the UN.

Analysts believe that Serbia is under major pressure to fulfill the requests coming primarily from the Western states and reduce its relations with Russia and China. A justified question to be asked is what is being offered to Serbia in return and will Serbia still be able to pursue an independent foreign policy and independently make decisions in line with its interests and global developments.

Those familiar with the Brussels political landscape, believe that even if Serbia would introduce sanctions against Russia nothing significant would change on its European path. However, increasing the pressure put on Serbia could destabilize the Western Balkan region and jeopardize the already fragile peace and latent stability, as well as additionally push Serbia in “the arms of” Russia and China.

Analysts believe that Serbia should continue to strengthen its foreign policy and work of affirmation of its international position despite the pressures, because the world is at a historical turning point and faced with establishment of a new international order. In that process it is important for the countries to pursue a proactive and balanced foreign policy in order to be better positioned in the new circumstances, which will definitely mark the coming decades at the global scene. The Serbian President is under intensive international pressure to recognize the independence of Kosovo, align the Serbian policy with that of the EU and particularly to introduce sanctions against Russia. The Serbian foreign policy concept is based on a quadrilateral including EU – USA – China – Russia +Nonalignment Movement. EU requests of Serbia to harmonize, that is subject its foreign policy to the EU, while there are no signs, let alone guarantees, that there will be any enlargement of the EU or that Serbia will become a full-fledged EU member.

Ljubljana/Washington/Brussels/Belgrade, 28 July 2022

[1] IFIMES – The International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, has a special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)/UN since 2018.

[2] Source: Politika daily, Blair: Era of Western dominance coming to an end (Približavamo se kraju dominacije Zapada), link: https://www.politika.rs/sr/clanak/512175/Bler-Priblizavamo-se-kraju-dominacije-Zapada

[3] Anis H. Bajrektarevic: Binarization of Foreign Policy Conduct, link: https://www.ifimes.org/en/researches/binarization-of-foreign-policy-conduct/4695?q=Binarization

If there is one thing that is good about the COVID19 pandemic then that is the fact that people have recognized the value of working remotely. Modern technology has been massively helpful in this regard, and it has allowed many people to connect all over the world while conducting business. Now that things are opening back up, people are approaching work from an entirely different angle. They are essentially combining the best of both worlds.

Digital nomads of the world are leveraging the potential of working remotely while visiting some of the most interesting places in the world. This is not just a current trend, but a legitimate way to conduct business that is here to stay. Over seven million Americans were identified as digital nomads in 2019, that number has risen by nearly 50% in 2020 according to a study. This means that the job market is also making the adjustments and there are things to keep in mind if you want to run your business while changing places. Here are five essential tips for running a business as a digital nomad.

Invest in good connection

Travelling around the world means that you are going to encounter a lot of unpredictable situations. This is not an ideal scenario for conducting work, since you need to be constantly in touch online with your staff and clients. A good option is to plan out where you will be staying and for how long. This will allow you to make the most out of your trip and find the best networks. In fact, it is possible to visit some of the most amazing world heritage sites such as Petra in Jordan, and still be able to do amazing work. This is because Jordan ADSL networks feature unlimited download with amazing speeds and affordable pricing, everywhere you go. You will be able to leverage the fully functional and stable network and take on any work-related challenges completely remotely. Now you can have your adventure, while working on your business too.

Announce your new style of working

One of the most important things regarding communication with your clients is letting them know that you are a digital nomad. This means that it is a good idea to be honest and fully transparent about the style of your work. Tell you clients that you may not be available at a certain time. Ideally you want to let people know that you can offer reliable service, but completely remotely. This is what setting up good boundaries at the beginning is all about.

Automate a part of your work

When working as a digital nomad it is important to understand your limitations. You may not always be available to reply to your clients and business associates. This is completely normal given that you have previously announced to your clients that you work remotely and frequently change locations. In order to keep some level communication even when you are away. It is possible to implement autoresponders that can help provide some of the most essential information to frequently asked questions for when you are travelling.

Balance work and fun

It is important to create a good work life-balance in general. However, as a digital nomad you might be more inclined to shift the scale more towards the “life” side. That is why it is a good idea to stick to a schedule so that no matter where you are, you can maintain a good level of productivity.

Create online presence

In order to allow people to keep track of where you are currently, you should create a social media profile on platforms such as Instagram or Facebook. It is also a good idea to create your own website where people will be able to reach you no matter where you are. This is also a good way to attract new clients by documenting interesting locations, while maintaining full transparency and disclosure of your availability.

Working as a digital nomad is extremely interesting, given that you can explore new amazing places almost daily. However, it comes with a handful of challenges first and there a few things to keep in mind if you want the get most out of this style of working. You should definitely invest in good connection in order to work optimally. Let people know how and when you work. Automate a part of your work using autoresponders. Keep a schedule to stay consistent. Make sure to track all of your work and travel progress online, so that you can connect with your clients.

By Peter Minkoff

Peter is a lifestyle and travel writer at Men-Ual magazine, living between Ústí nad Labem and Antwerp. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

The leading Czech artist Kateřina Šedá has recently launched an online database where anyone can submit bad habits. The symbol of the National Collection of Bad Habits is a two-tailed Czech lion holding a mobile phone in its paw. As of this week, the database is also accessible in English, with German and Ukrainian versions soon to follow.

“She washes the dishes before she puts them in the dishwasher”; “You are in the Czech Republic, so speak Czech”; “When I eat, I put my knee under my chin.” These are just some of the “vices” posted on the online database of bad habits, created by the internationally renowned Czech conceptual artist Kateřina Šedá.

The National Collection of Bad Habits is part of her project CELEJ VON, which celebrates the 200th anniversary of the birth of Gregor Johann Mendel, the founder of genetics. Kateřina Šedá explains:

“I did some research and I found out there was very little awareness of who he was. Many school children thought he was a YouTuber, a footballer or an actor.

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

For the first time, two unique documents about the events surrounding the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in May 1942 can be seen at the National Museum in Prague. They have been on display since Thursday as part of the special exhibition ‘We Will Never Give Up!’, which is being held as part of the 80th anniversary celebrations of Operation Anthropoid.

The two documents, one a letter from František Moravec to Brigadier Gubbins and the other a report to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, are usually kept in the collection of the British National Archives. But for three months they are available for the public to view in the historical building of the National Museum in Prague. According to the museum’s director, Michal Lukeš, it might be easy for visitors to miss the documents.

“Of course, they’re archive documents so visually they’re not that interesting – they’re just two typescripts.”

But their significance for European history cannot be underestimated – they confirm how important an act the assassination on May 27 eighty years ago was.

See the rest here.

Author: Anna Fodor

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. Dr Mohamad Zreik, PhD of International Relations prepared analysis entitled “Contemporary Saudi-Egyptian Relations: Challenges and Opportunities” about the relations between Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Contemporary Saudi-Egyptian Relations:

Challenges and Opportunities

The recent visit of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to Riyadh in March 2022 and meetings with the Saudi King and other authorities placed Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s relationship back into focus because of their issues and challenges. Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s official and media rhetoric refers to “Iranian, Turkish, and Yemeni threats” to the region’s security, stability, sovereignty, and interests.

Saudi Arabia supported Egypt’s independence and the withdrawal of British forces when they signed a treaty of friendship in 1926. A Defense Agreement was formed and signed between the two countries in 1955. Saudi Arabia backed Egypt during the 1956 aggression. During the October 1973 battle Saudi Arabia provided Egypt’s forces in Sinai with oil support.

Historical Background

After the United States reneged on its pledge to build the High Dam, Saudi Arabia stepped in to support Egypt with a gift of $100 million on August 27, 1956. Until the October 1973 conflict, Saudi Arabia supported Egypt by suspending oil supplies to the United States and Israel in support of Egypt. Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz also visited a trench in Egypt. Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic ties with Egypt on April 23, 1979, following the signing of the Camp David Accords. Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Saudi King Fahd bin Abdulaziz resumed diplomatic ties in 1987 after decades of estrangement.

Saudi Arabia stood by Hosni Mubarak after the revolution in Egypt on January 25, 2011. Mubarak received a phone call from Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, who offered his support and condemned the demonstrations. He also lauded the army’s role in the orderly transition of power following Mubarak’s departure, although ties were tense.

Saudi Arabia supported the alternative administration in Egypt prior to Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s rise to power and shortly after President Mohamed Morsi’s downfall. To help Egypt, Saudi Arabia sent an estimated $4 billion worth of monetary and in-kind assistance, as well as $2 billion in Central Bank deposits and perhaps an equal number of oil-related commodities.

Egypt-Gulf Cooperation

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates provided Egypt with almost $12 billion in loans, grants, and petroleum after the overthrow of Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi in early July 2013. With regard to the Gulf states’ financial support for Sisi, Sisi talked openly about his desire for $10 billion in payments from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and UAE. He also talked about the logistics of transferring the money to Egypt’s army accounts.

Saudi-led “Decisive Storm” military action in March 2015 was supported by Egypt. When Saudi Arabia announced the formation of a 34-country Islamic military alliance to combat terrorism on December 14, 2014, Egypt backed the Kingdom’s military strategy. However, Egypt provided only its assistance in the form of political and media backing, with no involvement on the ground.

A “people revolt” against Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. In response, the regime’s supporters, including Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah, launched an armed conflict with the Arab and Western-backed opposition groups. “We will not remove Bashar from power,” Sisi declared. Syrian revolution is a “sovereign matter” according to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, who also said Egypt supports a peaceful resolution. Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid noted that each sovereign country has its own measurements and assessments and makes decisions based on its own viewpoint.

Increasing Egyptian-Saudi Coordination Post-Arab Spring

Saudi Arabia was relieved by the ousting of the Muslim Brotherhood and the imprisonment of late Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi, who died in prison, during the Sisi era, which began in mid-2014. Due to Egypt’s new regime’s need for large and urgent doses of support to stop Egypt’s deterioration on all sides, the Egyptian regime and the monarchy in Saudi Arabia has become closer in a dramatic way. This historic opportunity presented itself to Saudi Arabia to correct the course of its relationship with Egypt and to reactivate it, so that it could avoid previous mistakes, one of which was Saudi Arabia’s bet on Mubarak’s steadfastness without providing strong and tangible support to him during the popular uprising.

Since the populist upheavals in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria, and Yemen began in late 2010, Saudi Arabia has expressed alarm about the expansion of these movements to the Gulf states. Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf states managed to keep “Arab Spring” repercussions under control through emergency economic, social, and financial policies and measures that eased internal conditions at the same time as boosting support for Arab regimes that resemble the Saudi regime, especially in terms of their association with US political, military, and economic interests.

During the Sisi era visits and unbroken contacts between officials of the two countries have increased to strengthen and support their relations in various fields during this period. The two countries’ relationship is characterized by a high level of coordination and open communication in order to address regional concerns, crises, risks, and challenges. As a starting point, all regional intervention in Arab countries’ affairs is considered as a threat to Arab independence, sovereignty, and national unity, regardless of their source.

Egyptian-Saudi Cooperation in the Light of Regional Changes

High-level contacts between Egyptian and Saudi officials have grown since Sisi’s election as Egypt’s president in 2014. A number of summits or Arab or inter-Arab encounters have taken place between Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi and Saudi Arabian leaders. With the tripling of Saudi financial help to Egypt’s administration, these reciprocal trips have solidified Egyptian-Saudi cooperation in a variety of industries; as a result of Iran’s “intervention” in Arab affairs and the necessity of a collective Arab reaction to Iran and its allies in the region and the importance of collaboration in combating terrorist groups in the region.

With the escalation of the so-called “strategic” Iranian threat to security in the region and the Gulf states in recent years, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have seen a remarkable development on several levels in their relationship. This is due in part to Iran’s growing military and economic capabilities, or the gains made by the axis led by Iran in the Middle East. Egypt and Saudi Arabia’s “strategic” relationship changed somewhat during the course of three years, but the consequences were significant. While condemning terrorism, both Saudi Arabia and Egypt focused on Egyptian backing for the Saudi Arabian campaign against Ansar Allah in Yemen and Saudi support for Egypt’s military campaign against takfiri groups in Sinai.

During high-level visits in 2020 and 2021, these concerns were revealed. At the time, Saudi Arabia expanded its financial and investment support to Egypt in exchange for Egypt’s political support of the Kingdom’s fight against “Iranian expansion” through its friends in the Middle East.

Several reports indicated that Egypt and Saudi Arabia have made significant progress in their economic, commercial, tourism, and health ties during the past two years. The Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, meantime, were also condemned by Egypt and Saudi Arabia at the same time.

After the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and its implications on global and regional security and stability, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi visited Riyadh on March 8, 2022, to discuss these issues. The recent Egyptian-Saudi summit, according to former assistant foreign minister Hamdi Saleh, sought a cohesive vision to face the hard circumstances around the world. “There is no clarity of vision following the Russian-Ukrainian conflict,” he said.

Osama Naqli, Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Egypt, is certain that the visit would yield beneficial results. More than 70 government agencies and institutions from both countries have signed a variety of agreements, memorandums of understanding, or protocol agreements, giving this relationship a strategic dimension that enhances the goals of joint cooperation between the concerned authorities in the two countries institutionally, he said. Saudi Arabia is the second-largest foreign investor in Egypt’s government and business sectors.

According to Gamal Aboul Fotouh, the Egyptian Senate’s Under-Secretary for Irrigation & Agriculture, the Egyptian-Saudi relations are long-standing and extend into the political and economic realms, with the total trade volume of 8.3 billion dollars between Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the first eleven months of this year, while the Egyptian exports to Saudi Arabia totalled about 2 billion dollars.

Egyptian-Saudi relations were tense, but not hostile, under Sisi and King Salman bin Abdulaziz’s rule, due to shared interests, challenges, and political visions, particularly in relation to the so-called Iranian threat and the political axis. In the wake of Egypt voting in favour of two different Security Council resolutions, one aimed at stopping the bloodshed in Aleppo but opposed by Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, ties between Riyadh and Cairo became unusually tense (on October 8, 2016). Saudi Arabia was furious by Egypt’s backing for the Russian decision, which it viewed as anti-Arab.

Al-Sisi has acknowledged that other countries exert pressure on Egypt. To him, “We will only kneel to God,” he stated at a military training conference. His country’s approach on Syria is autonomous, and he highlighted the importance of finding a political solution. He denied that the suspension of Saudi oil shipments to Egypt had anything to do with Egypt’s vote at the UN Security Council.

As the late Saudi journalist and writer Jamal Khashoggi put it, “I tend to think Saudi Arabia likes Egypt and would want to retain a good relationship with it.” Egyptians’ perceptions of the dangers to Arab national security are at the heart of the matter. “The Egyptians tried to remain neutral” according to Khashoggi. However, neutrality is unacceptable to Saudi Arabia. Even though Egypt does not explicitly back the regimes of Syria and Russia, it indirectly does so. Khashoggi went on to say that “the conflict’s premise is Iran’s win in Syria.” If Egypt adopts a more cooperative stance with Saudi Arabia, these differences will disappear.

Recent Developments in the Egyptian-Saudi Relations

After Egypt’s military overthrew President Mohamed Morsi in a bloodless coup in 2013, relations between Egypt and Qatar have been tense ever since. On the eve of cutting diplomatic ties with Doha on June 5, 2017, Al-Sisi said that the return to the previous situation would not lead to a significant change in Egyptian-Qatari relations. Resumption of aviation traffic and “limited” diplomatic representation between the two countries are the maximum measures that can be done. In fact, many government economists and others close to Sisi predict that Egypt’s investment losses would be exacerbated as a result of the rift, especially since Saudi, Emirati, and Kuwaiti capital have not joined the Egyptian market as planned five years ago.

Due to a decrease in funding and a lack of implementation of numerous projects and files agreed upon during King Salman’s and Crown Prince’s visits to Egypt in April 2016, Egypt and Saudi Arabia face a number of issues, most notably at the economic level. Mohammed bin Salman made the announcement in March of this year. Saudi-funded development projects in Sinai have been put on hold, according to reliable sources.

King Salman Bridge, which was part of a package of projects agreed upon by Egypt and Saudi Arabia in 2016 when they ceded Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia, has been stalled for two years at the point of comparison between two projects: first, the bridge is based on Tiran Island, and second, the bridge is extended on multiple stages between Ras Sheikh Hamid and Nabq. Egypt and Saudi Arabia also had issues with the renewal of the agreement to supply crude oil from Aramco, given the new contracts Egypt signed with Iraq to avoid a repeat of Saudi Arabia’s supply suspension, which occurred during Egypt’s judicial and parliamentary complications in the period of maritime border demarcation agreement implementation.

When Egypt and Saudi Arabia agreed to a maritime border delimitation deal in April 2016, Egyptians were outraged and the matter was taken to court, which cooled relations between the two countries for months. Egypt’s claim to Tiran and Sanafir originates from the 1906 boundary demarcation agreement, according to lawyers who oppose the deal.

The Egyptian government prioritized “importing” money from abroad in any manner and from any available source during the Sisi era in order to improve the poor economic and social conditions in Egypt. It was predicted that Egypt’s new leadership would gravitate toward Saudi Arabia, which is monetarily the richest Arab country, and cultivate ties with it at various levels, as well as “sell” it positions supporting its policies toward Yemen, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia have established a strong and long-lasting relationship despite their differing views on regional and international issues and some of its foundations being vulnerable. There’s the pillar of money (or petrodollars), which frequently upsets the equilibrium that should exist between states, particularly between Arab and Islamic countries. Economic, commercial, and cultural ties between Egypt and Saudi Arabia have become stronger as a result of their shared strategic objectives and geographical proximity. King Salman Bridge is expected to deliver economic benefits to Egypt and Saudi Arabia, according to officials.

As a result of these disparities, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have very different views and policies on a number of regional and international issues, including as the conflict in Syria, the Saudi-Yemeni war and the conflict in Libya, as well as Iran and Russia’s involvement in the region. However, these differences did not lead to a rift between the two, notably during the reign of Sisi. The 2013 military coup in Egypt resulted in the country losing much of its regional clout and strategic location. Economic hardship, near-total reliance on foreign aid and subsidies, as well as a decline in its political standing are all major roadblocks to its claim to regional leadership, leaving it open to pressure from Saudi Arabia or any other party holding up a card.

Saudi-Egyptian relations were exacerbated by the military participation of Syria and Russia. Russian policies in Syria and connections between Iran and Russia were a concern to Saudi Arabia. As Tehran’s most important international backer, Moscow provided military backing for the Assad regime in Syria, and was Tehran’s guarantor for the nuclear accord. The tumultuous global oil market over the last two years is a source of friction between the United States and Russia. As part of the struggle over quotas and prices, Saudi Arabia is wary of Russian and Iranian attempts to impose limitations on it. Egyptian diplomacy has moved closer to the Russian position since the July 2013 coup in Syria, restricting its focus to terrorism. Cairo, on the other hand, paid no attention to the crisis between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which was expected to resolved by Assad’s ouster. It is seen acceptable by the Sisi regime to maintain the old regime if Assad survives.

Egypt’s “very pragmatic” policy toward the Saudi regime, which aims to attract Gulf funds and investments into Egypt, especially at a time of financial affluence in the Kingdom and Saudi openness to Western countries in the economy, politics, culture, and the arts, also condones Saudi Arabia’s clumsy policies toward Lebanon, Syria, Libya, Sudan, and the Gaza Strip (up to most African and Asian countries). As a result of shared values and interests, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have a strong connection. It is necessary to coordinate efforts across various fields in order to protect the national security and economic interests of Arab countries, and to reorient the enormous capabilities of Arab peoples and countries in their natural historical direction, with full cooperation with neighbouring or distant countries.

About author:

Dr. Mohamad Zreik has PhD of International Relations, he is independent researcher, his area of research interest is related to Chinese Foreign Policy, Belt and Road Initiative, Middle Eastern Studies, China-Arab relations. Author has numerous studies published in high ranked journals and international newspapers.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect IFIMES official position.

Ljubljana/Beirut, 18 July 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.

The European Space Agency has released images capturing the recent temperature extremes in a number of European cities, including Prague. The photos, taken from the International Space Station, has revealed heat islands in the densely populated areas of the city, where temperatures reached over 45 degrees Celsius.

The land-surface temperature image of Prague was taken in the early afternoon in June, in the midst of one of the worst early summer heatwaves Europe has ever experienced. The picture was taken by an instrument called ECOSTRESS, installed on board the International Space Station. It demonstrates to what extent the densely built up areas can warm up during the hot summer months and shows how hot the actual surface would feel to the touch.

Among the most affected areas in Prague, glowing bright red on the map, is the Holešovice district by the Vltava River. Michael Pondělíček is a landscape planning expert from Prague’s Institute of Planning and Development:

“This is mainly because of the old railway station with lots of iron and asphalt and very few trees, so it absorbs a lot of heat from the sun and during the summer months it doesn’t cool down even during the night.

“It is also due to its position at the bottom of the Vltava valley, which is traditionally much warmer and is poorly ventilated.”

Other parts of the city with extremely high land-surface temperature include the area surrounding the O2 Arena in the Vysočany district and the industrial zone in Štěrboholy. The image also reveals the cooling effect of parks, vegetation and water on the city:

“The main cooling corridor in Prague is the Vltava River and its surroundings, which operates day and night. It is also cooler thanks to the water released into the river from the Vranov dam, which helps to keep the temperature in the city down.

“The other significant green oasis is the Olšany cemetery with a number of fully grown trees, which create a specific microclimate. And then of course all the larger parks, such as Petřín, Stromovka, Vítkov Hill and others.”

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Author: Ruth Fraňková

• Independent clean energy power producer built on 15 years of experience in the Czech Republic and the broader region
• Backed by €500m from Actis, a leading global investor in sustainable infrastructure
• Based in Prague, Rezolv will hire Czech engineering talent to support its growth plans across the region

Rezolv Energy, the independent clean energy power producer established to build a new era of sustainable power in Central and South Eastern Europe, has officially launched today. The company, which is based in Prague, is built on 15 years of clean energy heritage in the Czech Republic and the wider region.

Backed by €500m from Actis, the company will provide subsidy-free clean energy at a long-term, stable price for commercial and industrial users, and other off-takers, operating across the region. This will include supermarkets, breweries, telecoms and other large businesses.

Rezolv aims to build a multi-gigawatt portfolio of wind, solar and energy storage. This will help companies and countries across the region meet their energy needs in response to energy security challenges and climate policies. It will take renewable energy projects from late-stage development through construction and into long-term operation.

Although the company is newly-formed, its leadership team has been based in Prague for well over a decade and has previously developed and run a portfolio of energy projects in the Czech Republic, including:

• The 18 MW wind farm at Horní Loděnice near Olomouc, which comprises nine 2 MW wind turbines. Originally constructed in 2008/9, the project has been managed by the Rezolv management team since 2010.
• The RETA solar project, which comprises over 96,000 solar panels at three parks in Mimoň (4.4 MW), Točník (2.1 MW) and Lomeček (0.9 MW). The Rezolv team managed the construction in 2010 and has operated the projects ever since.

The Czech Republic remains a key strategic priority for Rezolv, which will be hiring Czech engineering talent to support its growth plans both locally and internationally.

Jim Campion, Chief Executive, Rezolv said: “Rising energy costs, heightened security concerns, demand to meet climate targets, and stakeholder expectations, are causing a rethink on energy usage – and production. Today, private companies, as well as public utilities, are finding their traditional reliance on fossil fuels far less viable.

“We were very encouraged that the Czech government included support for renewable energy in its initial policy statement earlier this year and is continuing to champion the importance of renewables in reducing dependence on Russian fossil fuels through its Presidency of the EU. Rezolv has been created to accelerate this transition. Our experience, combined with long-term investment from one of the leading global investors in sustainable infrastructure, gives us the financial strength to accelerate large scale renewable projects in the Czech Republic and across Central and South Eastern Europe.”

As part of its strategy, Rezolv is also committed to upholding the very highest environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. The company’s plan includes ensuring it leaves a lasting, positive legacy in each community where it invests and operates. Projects will adhere to best practice and international standards including the Equator Principles and the IFC’s Environmental and Social Performance Standards.

Lucy Heintz, Partner, Head of Energy Infrastructure, Actis, said: “This announcement is an exciting moment for Actis as we sign our first Energy Infrastructure investment in Central and South Eastern Europe, with the ambition of building and operating a market-leading renewable energy platform. Our investment in the region strongly aligns with our strategy to build sustainability leaders where we find opportunities to support the Energy Transition, especially important as energy security needs drive faster adoption of renewable energy.”

The International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES)[1] from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyzes developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. On the occasion of the recently held summit of leaders of the Open Balkan regional initiative in Ohrid and the EU-Western Balkans summit in Brussels, IFIMES made an analysis of the current political situation in the Western Balkans. We bring the most important and interesting parts of the extensive analysis titled “2022 Open Balkan: The future belongs to the peoples of the Balkans.”

2022 Open Balkan:

The future belongs to the peoples of the Balkans

The European Union’s treats Western Balkans states as a wicked stepmother. While this has not significantly changed even after the Russian invasion on Ukraine, it did triggered a fundamental debate on whether the EU wants at all to admit the remaining six Western Balkan countries (Serbia, North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo) to full-fledged membership. If the EU would have an intent to admit the listed countries to its membership, the question to be asked is how it could do that. Namely, 19 years have passed since the adoption of the Thessaloniki agenda for the Western Balkans, which envisaged membership of the Western Balkan countries in the EU. Other than the promises about European perspective of the respective countries, nothing concrete has happened with respect to their membership in the EU.

In the meantime, the fact that Ukraine and Moldova were given candidate status just three months after they had submitted their membership application with the EU, caused major disappointment on their part. While North Macedonia and Albania are still waiting for the beginning of the talks with the EU due to the blockade imposed by Bulgaria, which is “taking it out on” North Macedonia by factually negating the existence of Macedonia as a state, its people, identity and language. In fact, the Bulgarian parliament adopted a new decision “unblocking” the start of talks between the EU and North Macedonia, which includes requirements that are unacceptable for North Macedonia. Bearing in mind its text, the decision of the Bulgarian Parliament, which is unacceptable for North Macedonia, factually imposes an even more specific blockade. Unfortunately, all this is happening under the “spotlights” and is greeted with applause by the EU. Bulgaria and North Macedonia should use the upcoming period to find a compromise agreement that would unblock the process of the commencement of talks with the EU in line with the solution proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron.

The general perception is that the EU constantly avoids to take a concrete stance on membership of Western Balkans countries in the EU. In this respect, French President Emmanuel Macron had recently launched an initiative on establishment of a European political alliance which would encompass Western Balkans countries as well. As the EU is a political, economic, cultural and value-based alliance, why is there a need to propose establishment of a new political alliance, that is a block of countries that would primarily be aimed against Russia and ultimately China as well. A new global order is being established and the question is what place will the Western Balkans get in it.

Open Balkan – Opportunities and chances

The recently held EU-Western Balkans summit in Brussels confirmed something that all Western Balkans leaders have been emphasizing for quite some time already. Specifically, that the issue of membership of Western Balkans in the EU, before and after everything else, is a political issue. That is the essence, while everything else is a matter of harmonization with the EU acquis communautaire, adoption of its principles and standards in various spheres of social life, the legal framework, standardization of economies and other areas are just a justification for the political stance of EU member countries with respect to the EU enlargement process.

At the mentioned summit, all the hopes, assurances, negotiations and talks, conditioning and agreements with respect to membership of countries from the region in the EU lost their real, argument-based rationale and sense. The fact is that while without any order, procedure or rule, Ukraine and Moldova where granted candidate status, the “obstacles“ put before Western Balkans countries are of exclusively political nature and do not take into account all the efforts and achievements of candidate-states in the region so far, which in some cases covers a multidecade period. The best example of the above is North Macedonia. Namely, the fact that it had even agreed to change its name did not increase its chances on the country’s European path even by a tenth of a percent.

On the other side, as an initiative that has unified the efforts of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia in establishment of West Balkans as a more secure, stable and prosperous region for all the peoples living in it, the Open Balkan has achieved exceptional and by many parameters measurable and very promising results. While this should only better qualify the countries in the region for membership in the EU, it should also serve as the crown evidence that the European commitment of candidate countries is unquestionable and lasting. Unfortunately, the facts deny the reality and the developments. Namely, that is why it is possible for the Open Balkan (which enjoys at least general, although partial, support of the EU, in additional to everything done and the criteria fulfilled so far) does not constitute a sufficiently strong and valid argument in the process of integration into the EU. Regardless of everything, the arguments that representatives of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia had presented to the public in their media appearances following the EU-Western Balkans summit in Brussels, as well as the fact that it is more than evident that EU member countries “do not see” (at least at this time, for which it is very uncertain how long it will last) Western Balkans countries as full-fledged members of the EU, lead to the conclusion that the Open Balkan project is the true opportunity for the region to continue to evolve, to fight for itself, as well as present and prove itself in the best light with respect to EU acceptable criteria and standards. Naturally, there are also challenges and theories about the Open Balkan being a version of “Serb world”, bearing in mind that Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and partly Montenegro claim this is a project that promotes Serbian policy and link it to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. The arguments coming from the listed countries are primarily informed by the responses and actions of the international community, as there are no substantiated analyses or national stances on why Open Balkan would be about “creating the Serb world.”

The IFIMES international institute has already underlined on several occasions that it is important that Open Balkan countries adequately face the recent past, abolish arrest warrants and lists, primarily the ones from Serbia, for suspected war crimes and other crimes against humanity, as well as allow for implementation of trails in the states in which the crime had been committed. It is of general interest for all that the states that dispute the Open Balkan initiate officially define their stances and explain why they find the idea of Open Balkan unacceptable, as the only way to overcome differences and suspicions is through talks and negotiations. If Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Montenegro have official arguments for which they do not want to be a part of the Open Balkan initiative, then that would be the best way and path to improve the neighborly and interstate relations and further develop them in mutual understanding and trust. Without trust the Open Balkan idea will be doomed to failure. Actually, for all the countries that believe the Open Balkan is a kind of a conspiracy, this idea would be an opportunity to present arguments and expose any supremacy-aspirations or, as they assert, plans of creation of “Serb world.”

All the results that have been achieved, particularly in the area of economy and economic cooperation among Open Balkan member countries- faster flow of people, goods, capital and services, growth of all economic indicators, better and more comprehensive political cooperation, prompt resolution of all internal problems and disputes through the process of dialogue and brokering of agreements- are a testimony that Western Balkan countries have something to offer to the EU, as well as that they want, can and know how to cooperate with the EU, that they have to, both formally and legally, be a part of the community of European peoples and that they are and have been for centuries a part of Europe, irrespective of the fact that the current policy and bureaucracy dispute that and impede them. Open Balkan is a regional initiative, a regional project, but is not a substitute for membership in the EU, nor is it a “substitute” or “consolation prize” to candidate countries for membership in the EU, and least of all a kind of a “hallway” or a “waiting room.”

The Open Balkan is primarily another, very strong and quality proof of maturity of Western Balkan countries for full-fledged membership in the EU, which they have been promised for decades already and every little given additional conditions for it. The Open Balkan is also a unique chance and a plethora of opportunities for additional development and progress of all the concerned countries in all areas of social, public, economic, cultural and even political life in this region, which has always been and is a part of Europe. While it is a Balkan model, in its essence it is far more a European model and way of building a common future – a European future, regardless of all the obstacles on the way to achieving it.

The European leaders have went back on their promise and undermined their credibility, as well as the credibility of the EU. The Schuman’s vision of united Europe is brought under question. In this respect, it could be even said that specific European leaders are acting against the idea of Robert Schuman, who masterminded the project of today’s EU. The credibility of some European leaders is further tainted by their involvement in crime and corruption. In fact, some of them even act as proponents of negative and illegal occurrences and are involved in numerous affairs.

Montenegro could benefit the most from Open Balkan

Montenegrin Prime Minister Dritan Abazović and the Chair of the BiH Council of Ministers Zoran Tegeltija also attended the recently held summit of leaders of Open Balkan countries in Ohrid. Prime Minister Abazović understands the importance of the Open Balkan initiative, which enjoys strong support of the US. The latest calculations show that Montenegro could disproportionately benefit the most from the Open Balkan project. This is a new fact that should be seriously taken into account in the context of the post-Covid recovery and the crisis caused by the Russian invasion on Ukraine. Therefore, the interest demonstrated by Prime Minister Abazović in the Open Balkan project comes as no surprise. However, the problem is that in Montenegro the politico-mafia structures, symbolized by the helm of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) headed by Montenegrin President Milo Đukanović, want to try to dispute the initiative in every possible way, because the Open Balkan project would reduce space for crimes and accumulation of revenues from illegal activities.

By joining the Open Balkan project Kosovo would come out of a decades-long isolation, as it is the most isolated area in Europe. After all, this would be a step in the direction of getting visa liberalization for Kosovo citizens.

Analysts believe that the visit by Montenegrin Prime Minister Dritan Abazović to Serbia is a turning point in the new relations between the official Belgrade and Podgorica. The visit created a window for overcoming of many issues and all stakeholders must give their contribution to that process. The Western Balkans have to be treated differently, while the overall relations have to be relaxed in a way that the Western Balkans region is no longer perceived as a problematic region but a region of opportunities and development, a region in which agreements are made, a region that wants to move forward and a region in which primary topics are focused on economy and the future. The past cannot be changed, but the future can and it can be better and less uncertain. The region can be made additionally secure. The upcoming winter will constitute a major challenge for all and the preparations to overcome it will largely depend on regional cooperation and solidarity, which does not mean that countries in the region have given up on their European path and membership in the EU.

Golob[2]“over” the Balkans

Robert Golob and his Freedom Movement won by a landslide at the recent parliamentary elections in Slovenia. While his predecessor Janez Janša (SDS) pursued a policy that was linked to “non-papers”, which had triggered an avalanche of negative responses and trends, even threats and risks of escalation of conflict in the region, particularly because of the security challenges that emerged after the Russian invasion on Ukraine, Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob offers a new political concept and approach to the Western Balkans. His approach is partly already visible through his engagement in the European Council where he advocated that after years of delay the EU should award candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Prime Minister Golob could bring a new incentive to the European engagement on the Balkans with the intent to revive and accelerate the EU enlargement process on the Western Balkans and define the final timelines for full-fledged integration of the Western Balkans countries into the EU.

The EU is constantly setting new membership conditions and criteria to the Western Balkan countries. Awarding the candidate status by the EU to Ukraine and Moldova, has rendered the whole system of conditioning by the EU senseless. Analysts believe that the official Brussels has not drawn any lessons from the recent history and does not fully understand the mindset of the Balkan peoples, which have problems accepting any kind of conditioning but always welcome an honest friendly relation, including critical ones. Although the rule of law and functional institutions are the foundation of the EU and its legal organization, EU has never developed true and partner relations with Western Balkan citizens but primarily with corrupted politico-mafia structures, which act against the institutions. The risk of abolition of the visa free regime for the Western Balkan countries if being frequently mentioned. However, the practice has shown that there were no real risks and threats in that respect. Hence, a justified question is whether 18 million citizens of the Western Balkans could jeopardize the EU and its 450 million citizens, if the Western Balkans countries would become full-fledged members of the EU. Many current EU member states could not fully meet the current membership conditions set to the Western Balkans countries. In a way, did not the EU “turn a blind eye” when it coopted Bulgaria, Rumania and even Croatia as it members. Another testimony of the inconsistency of the EU is the fact that in 2004 9.5 countries were coopted as full-fledged members of the EU, as only one half of Cyprus was integrated into the EU. The decision to integrate Finland and Sweden “overnight” into NATO shows that everything is possible when there is the political will. The same applies to enlargement of the EU.

Finalization of Belgrade – Pristina dialogue key for ensuring lasting peace and stability in the region

The prevailing opinion in the EU is that Serbia is the engine of normalization of the Western Balkans, as well as the engine of European integration of the Western Balkans countries. The process of integration of Serbia into the EU has been particularly intensified over the past several years. However, for more than two years already Serbia has not opened a new chapter in the negotiations, which brings into question the intents and plans of the EU regarding its enlargement.

Analysts believe that Serbia has the strongest and most developed personnel and logistic infrastructure with which in a relatively short period of time it can respond to the challenges of the negotiation process and justify the attribute of being the engine of European integration in the Western Balkans. Fears of Serbia as the biggest country in the region are unjustified, because there are also no founded fears of Germany as the largest and most powerful EU member country.

Finalization of the dialogue between the official Belgrade and Pristina with the signing of a comprehensive mandatory agreement on normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo is of key importance for the future of the region as it would provide for a lasting peace and stability in the Western Balkans. The recently brokered agreement on energy, which was mediated by the EU, instills hope that the dialogue will be continued. The latest unilateral moves by Pristina, specifically restriction of freedom of movement, do not constitute a contribution to normalization of relations. Implementation of the Brussels Agreement (establishment of Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO) is inevitable, just like the signing of a fundamental agreement on regulation of relations between the state of Montenegro and the Serb Orthodox Church (SPC), which is the predominant religious community in the country.

EU makes a similar mistake with Serbia as it did with Belarus

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić is faced with lack of understanding on the part of some realms in the EU, who render his position in Serbia even more difficult. It is common knowledge that Orthodox and Muslim peoples in the Western Balkans have unbreakable spiritual connections with the East, just as the Catholic population has with the West, specifically Vatican. Spiritual relations with the East are virtual, while affiliation with Europe is daily and real.

Analysts believe that through its specific actions the EU is “pushing” Serbia into the arms of Russia and China, just as it did with Belarus two years ago. Instead of extending a hand to Belarus and bringing it closer to the EU, through its specific injudicious and rather detrimental moves it pushed the country into the grip of Russia and Vladimir Putin. Judging by everything, even if Serbia would introduce sanctions against Russia in line with the prevailing trend within the EU, nothing would happen or change with respect to its European path.

Upcoming 2022/23 winter – challenge and opportunity for the Open Balkan

The importance of cooperation and solidarity is most evident in case of natural disasters (fires, earthquakes, floods, etc.). However, the latest challenges that individual countries and region as a whole have face were the Covid-19 pandemic and the energy and food crisis, which resulted from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Cooperation is important also because of the relations between the Western Balkans and the EU. A voice of one country towards the EU does not mean much. However, when all six Western Balkan countries act and speak with one voice towards the EU, that generates a new quality and weight. The Open Balkan initiative is not an alternative to membership in the U but a path for the country to faster prepare itself for membership in the EU and seize all the untapped opportunities of synergy and cooperation. The economy of scope without administrative barriers is an important moment for regional cooperation. The Open Balkan is an embryo of new economic clusters, which are already being created in the region and constitute a competitive advantage for the countries and the region.

It is necessary to more concretely align Open Balkan with other initiatives, so that they do not overlap. This would facilitate achievement of a high level of integration. It is important to ensure economic development and creation of competitive advantages, as well as invest efforts in creation of higher predictability in the region, work on development of institutions that should reduce black-marketing, smuggling and evasion of taxes and duties. It is necessary to create an economy that will assist investors who want to work in line with the legal framework and legally. Chambers of commerce have displayed enthusiasm with respect to the Open Balkan, which is primarily an economic project focused on creation of new opportunities.

Energy-wise, Western Balkans is more vulnerable than other regions. It is particularly vulnerable in the context of the upcoming winter. The Western Balkan countries do not have the luxury to turn their back to each other. If they want to have energy products, electric energy and food, they need to focus on intensive and quality cooperation, because the Open Balkan belongs to the people, not Vučić, Rama, Kovačevski, Abazović …. The Open Balkan is yet another mechanism that should facilitate crisis response.

Analysts believe that if the peoples of the Balkans cooperate and focus on the future the future will belong to them. The credibility of the EU is at test in the Western Balkans and the EU is probably at its last chance to save the Western Balkan countries from the “grip” of Russia, China and Turkey. The level and intensity of cooperation in the region will be most evident through the level of success of preparation for surviving the upcoming winter of 2022/23, which will be the biggest challenge for all in the last several decades. In this respect, the bigger role of the US will be of crucial importance, particularly in the context of prevention of possible new conflicts that could emerge as a consequence of a deteriorated security situation and the changed security architecture in Europe caused by the Russian invasion on Ukraine.

Ljubljana/Brussels/Washington, 6 July 2022

[1] IFIMES – The International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, has a special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)/UN since 2018.

[2] Golob- Slovenian word for pigeon or dove.

The Faculty of Electrical Engineering at Prague’s Czech Technical University recently acquired two new assistants – agile dog-like machines with robotic arms that can navigate terrain and capture data – and is using them to create a digital 3D map of Prague’s underground tunnel network.

Spot, as its name suggests, is somewhat reminiscent of a bright yellow robotic dog. But this ‘robodog’ from US company Boston Dynamics can do a lot more than sit and come when called, as professor Tomáš Svoboda explains:

“It’s a quadruped robot with an integrated robotic arm, that’s essentially able to manipulate objects, even open and close doors. One of the unique features is that the arm, and more precisely the gripper, is equipped with sensors in the palm, so the robotic arm can perceive the environment – it can see, it has an RGB camera and also a depth sensor, so it can measure the distance to the object it is going to grasp.”

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Author: Anna Fodor

Physical activity is vital for your well-being. That is especially true for people spending hours behind their desks and leading a sedentary lifestyle. Regular stretches, cardio, and aerobics exercises will prevent bad posture, which can otherwise potentially lead to neck and shoulder pain. Are you one of those people working a 9-5 job and looking for the best way to incorporate a workout into your daily routine? You’ve come to the right place.

Develop a morning workout routine

Working 9-5 leaves you plenty of time to become a super early bird so you can develop a morning workout routine. Starting a day with exercises will fuel you with energy, allowing you to be at your peak productivity when you most need it. If you commute to work, get up two hours before you need to leave for work. That will leave give you enough time to wake up properly, do your morning exercise, shower and get ready for work. Prepare breakfast the night before, so you have more time to work out. Light stretches, running on a treadmill and yoga are some of the best ways to wake up your body and incorporate activity into your 9-5 work day.

Split your active time

If waking up early was never your strong suit, you can consider splitting your exercises. Don’t wake up at the crack of dawn, but do shorter workout intervals, several times a day. When you get up, only spend 10 minutes doing morning stretches. While at work, use your coffee break to do several exercises behind the desk. Pack your gym wear to work, change before you leave the office and jog home to make the most of your commute. That way, you won’t have to compromise on sleep or have too tight a schedule even when your itinerary is already packed.

Find a gym near work

Have you ever considered using your lunch break to work out? Look for a gym near your office, and you’ll be able to sleep in the morning and have time for socialising after work. Shop for some quality women’s activewear to bring to work, and hop to the gym on your break. Find a gym that is close enough to allow you to arrive and leave quickly while also having enough time to do all the exercises necessary for your body to feel and look good.

Do exercise at work

When you can catch a breath from work, think about exercising behind your desk. Arm stretches, neck and shoulders twists, lunges, sit-ups and hamstring stretches will help your posture and energy levels. Look away from your computer to get up and stretch the muscles in your arms and shoulders. Do shoulder stretches for a minute or two each day. You can also do desk push-ups and triceps dips. Chair plank and side dips will strengthen your core, making you feel more energised and look better too. Add weighted bangles to your desk workouts to make the exercise more intense.

Incorporate activity into everything

When there’s no gym near your workplace, and you don’t feel like sacrificing sleep for workouts, there’s only one solution – incorporating physical activity into your work day. Do you sit behind your desk during conference calls? Do you take the elevator instead of the stairs to go to your office and exit the building? Change all those practices to start walking instead. Use headphones to be able to walk around your office during a call. If your company can afford it, ask for standing desks so everyone can be more active and prevent sitting down all day.

Final thoughts

Incorporating exercise into your daily routine doesn’t have to be challenging. All it takes is determination and effort to make your plans work. So, check out our tips and choose the one that suits you best to start your wellness journey immediately.

By Peter Minkoff

Peter is a lifestyle and travel writer at Men-Ual magazine, living between Ústí nad Labem and Antwerp. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

Numerous events have been taking place in the Czech Republic and Brussels to mark the start of the Czech EU presidency. One of them is an exhibition of designer wine glasses celebrating the 27-member states, which is now on display at the Jablonec Museum of Glass and Jewelry.

The exceptional collection of twenty-seven pairs of sparkling wine and champagne glasses each linked to one of the 27-member states now has pride of place in the Jablonec Museum of Glass and Jewelry. The shape and colour of the goblets differ and symbolize the individual countries of the European Union. They are the brainwork of designer and artist Mária Burešová and were made by glassworks located in the so-called Crystal Valley in north Bohemia – the cradle of Czech glassmaking.

The museum’s chief curator Petr Nový explains how the idea emerged.

“It all started back in 2020 when we were approached by designer Mária Burešová who sent us a few of her designs –wine glasses symbolizing individual countries. It was during the first Covid wave and she had a lot of time on her hands. They designs were great and we thought it would be a good idea to turn it into a project celebrating the EU. So she got to work and produced this collection. Two wine glasses for each country – a glass for red or white wine and a champagne flute. They were produced by seven glassworks in Crystal Valley because we wanted to show the amazing glass tradition that was born here –which is exceptional even by European standards.”

The 54 glasses are showcased in pairs and each country has its own motif. Finland has lakes, Ireland a four-leaf clover, Denmark smokestacks on a ship, Greece an amphora, Latvia amber, Slovakia the Tatra Mountains, Bulgaria rose oil and the Czech Republic – its traditional white crystal glass.”

Authors: Daniela Lazarová, Tomáš Mařas
Photo: Aleš Kosina, Museum of Glass and Jewellery in Jablonec nad Nisou

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Julia Sherwood, an award-winning translator and literary organiser, was born in Bratislava, but spent most of her life in the UK, where she settled after emigrating from Czechoslovakia in 1978. Today, she lives in London with her husband, linguist and translator Peter Sherwood, with whom she translates mainly Slovak but also Czech authors, including Alena Mornštajnová and Radka Denemarková. Julia Sherwood spent the last weeks in Prague on a residency organised by the Czech Literary Centre. I caught up with her just before her return to London to discuss her work and I started by asking her what she was working on during her month-long stay in the Czech capital.

“I was not actually working on any Czech translation but I have used this time, I believe very fruitfully, to make some new contacts in the Czech literary world and to deepen some existing contacts.

“The fact that the book festival Svět Knihy (Book World Prague) took place during my stay was wonderful. I also attended Knihex, where I met several publishers of graphic novels and comic books, which is a new genre I have been slowly easing myself into.

“At Svět Knihy I also attended some of the presentations and I participated in a panel on translation in tandem.”

You have recently translated a couple of Czech graphic novels, Vojtěch Mašek’s horror detective story The Sisters Dietl and Lucie Lomová’s Savages, into English. What made you change your attitude towards the genre?

“Several factors played into it. One was that for quite a few years now I started noticing that graphic novels and comic books have really acquired a completely new status.

“They were regarded as something secondary, trashy, solely for children or very commercial, but they have become acknowledged or recognised as a literary genre in its own right.

“And then I started noticing that there have been quite a few really interesting graphic novels published in this country. So I started looking around and the first book that really caught my interest was Saint Barbara, which is a collaboration between Marek Šindelka, Vojtěch Mašek and Marek Pokorný.

“I really would love to translate this book, because it fascinated me. It’s such a great story. It is mysterious and it is also one that I believe would resonate with the readers in the English-speaking world.”

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková
Photo: Labyrint

A new multimedia exhibition has opened up this week at the Riding School of Prague Castle. Covering over 2,000 square metres of space, Alphonse Mucha eMotion combines digitised and 3D animated versions of Czech Art Nuveau master Alfons Mucha’s most famous works, such as the Slav Epic, with the classical music of another famous contemporary – Antonín Dvořák. I spoke to the producer of the exhibition, Richard Fuxa, whose foundation owns the most complete collection of the artist’s posters.

“Alphonse Mucha eMotion, as you can feel from the name, is about emotions, about the visual experience. This is a type of immersive exhibition that is quite common nowadays around the world.

“The aim of the experience is to immerse yourself in these large-format big projections, which you can experience within a full 360 degree circle. This is also possible due to the phenomenal spaces in the Riding School of Prague Castle.

“This is also the first time ever in the world that we took the work of Alfons Mucha and projected it on large screens. We were able to digitize all of his original works and combined them with the dynamics of music and movement as well.”

I read that the accompanying music are compositions from Antonín Dvořák and that Pierce Brosnan read the accompanying narration. Is that true?

“Yes, yes, that’s true. There is special music from Antonín Dvořák supporting the emotion that you feel precisely from these large format moving paintings.

“When the visitors come and begin their tour, Pierce Brosnan’s [voice] welcomes them. They can see a large self-portrait of Alfons Mucha, which speaks to them through the voice of Pierce Brosnan.”

Read the rest here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe
Photo: Michal Krumphanzl, ČTK

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, Balkans and around the world. Dr. Masahiro Matsumura, Professor of International Politics and National Security, Faculty of Law, St. Andrew’s University (Momoyama Gakuin Daigaku) and Member of IFIMES Council prepared an article entitled »Who is a primary winner in the emerging food crisis?« about the impact of Ukraine war on global food crises. The article is published in its entirety.

Who is a primary winner in the emerging food crisis?

Since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, international grains prices, especially wheat, corn and sunflower, have soared. The circumstance has abruptly aggravated the already serious shortage of grains due to frequent droughts and other adverse climatic variations, now developing into a global food crisis. According to the U.N. World Food Program, 49 million people in the developing world are falling into peril of famine, manifested by riots and protestations in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru, and by destabilizing dynamics in the Sahel, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Chad, among others[2].

To be noted, Russia and Ukraine are major wheat exporters that together supply some 30% of global wheat exports. The West has imposed severe economic sanctions on Russia, especially the exclusion of the country from the SWIFT, or a dominant on-line system for U.S. dollar-based international settlement, that impedes the country from exporting. Besides, the Western governments and mainstream media are denouncing Moscow for minelaying against major ports in the Black and Azov Seas, especially Mariupol and Odessa

Yet, such minelaying against the port of Mariupol is at least self-inflicting for Russia, as a significant portion of Russia’s grain exports also depends on the port’s capacity and secure sealines of communications in the two Seas[3], Thus, Moscow surely finds it most rational to keep Mariupol mine-free, while, with its significant superior naval power, putting naval blockade against Ukraine’s naval operations, replenishment and trade with strategic implications.

On the other hand, Ukraine will find itself compelled to take an anti-access denial strategy against Russia’s naval power, by actively employing sea mines as well as coastal defense cruise missiles[4]. This is because Ukraine’s naval power is highly inferior to that of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. Also, its counter-amphibious assault land and air power are also very limited, especially at the initial phase of the war when the country had to fight in international isolation without any substantial military assistance and arms transfer. In early March, Belarus President Lukashenko inadvertently showed a classified map on Russia’s military plan to attack Ukraine, including amphibious assaults against Odessa[5].

Such a strategy has become obvious and turned out somewhat effective in the mid-April when Ukraine used its home-grown anti-ship cruise missile, Neptune, to have successfully sunk the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, Moskva, with assistance of the U.S. military intelligence to locate and target the ship at the offshore of Odessa.

Most plausibly, therefore, it may be Ukrainian troops that have laid mines against possible Russia’s amphibious assaults aimed to occupy Mariupol and Odessa. Given close intelligence cooperation between Washington and Kiev, the minelaying was likely done according to the advice of U.S. military intelligence.

No wonder, Moscow attributes the minelaying to Kiev[6], and has swiftly de-mined the Mariupol port while securing safe passage open through the Azov Sea[7] In reality, Kiev remains reluctant to de-mine for setting up protected corridors[8].

Amid the intense interplay of war propaganda and counter-propaganda, West’s denunciation against Russia’s minelaying has hardly turned out be cogent in the BRICS and other major developing nations that have not partaken in U.S-led Western economic sanction against Russia.

In response to growing international pressure, Moscow says that, if the West lifts its economic sanctions, it is now ready to lift its blockade against seven Ukrainian ports, including Odessa and set up protected sea corridors for international shipping[9]. Currently, Moscow and Ankara are gearing up for talks to realize these corridors in the Black Sea[10].

In the evolving global food crisis, the developing world will largely welcome Russia’s move to fill the supply gap, especially because the country expects a large grain harvest to support higher exports this year[11].

Consequently, the West faces a dilemma. If the West decides to lift the current sanctions, that will constitute a confirmation of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, accelerating the weakening of the existing liberal international order. Conversely, if the West chooses to continue the sanctions, that will deepen the emerging food crisis and the instability of many developing countries, pushing them away toward authoritarianism and further weakening the international order. Then, for grains imports from Russia, developing countries will have to rely on an alternative on-line system for international settlement, most probably, China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) that has seen a gradual and steady growth in the networking, in tandem with many infrastructure building projects under the Bridge and Road Initiatives across the developing world

Most importantly, such a plausible outcome involves significant risks to further weaken the key currency role of the U.S. dollar as an essential base of the U.S. economic hegemony and the U.S.-led international order. This is particularly so because the U.S. Federal Reserve is about to launch a full-scale quantitative tightening that will involve a devastative effect on the deepening structural vulnerabilities of the U.S. national economy ridden with huge cumulative federal debts.

Thus, it is China that will probably get most out of the ongoing politics of a global food crisis, while pulling Russia more onto its geo-economic orbit.

Now the West has to reconstruct a comprehensive approach to the Ukraine war, by overcoming its myopic attention to the military dimension.

About the author:

Prof. Dr. Masahiro Matsumura is Professor of International Politics and National Security, Faculty of Law, St. Andrew’s University (Momoyama Gakuin Daigaku). He is Member of IFIMES Council.

The views expressed in this explanatory note are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect IFIMES official position.

Ljubljana/Osaka, June 22, 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.

[2] Jack Phillips. “World Has Just ’10 Weeks’ of Wheat Supplies Left in Storage, Analyst Warns”, Epoch Times, May 22, 2022, https://www.theepochtimes.com/analyst-warns-world-has-just-10-weeks-of-wheat-supplies-left-in-storage_4482789.html. Tyler Durden, “Russia To Open Sea Corridors From Ukraine Ports Amid Wheat Crisis, But Warns Of Ukrainian Mines”, ZeroHedge, May 26, 2022, https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/russia-open-sea-corridors-ukraine-ports-amid-wheat-crisis-warns-ukrainian-mines.

[3] Yelena Vassilieva and Levin Flake, “Overview of Russian Grain Port Capacity and Transportation”, GAIN Report, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, No. RS1149, November 3, 2011, https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/report/downloadreportbyfilename?filename=Overview%20of%20Russian%20Grain%20Port%20Capacity%20and%20Transportation_Moscow_Russian%20Federation_11-3-2011.pdf. Levin Flake, “Russian Grain Port Capacity and Transportation Update”, GAIN Report, RS1352, August 16, 2013, https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/report/downloadreportbyfilename?filename=Overview%20of%20Russian%20Grain%20Port%20Capacity%20and%20Transportation_Moscow_Russian%20Federation_11-3-2011.pdf.

[4] Jason Lancaster, “An Anti-Access Denial Strategy For Ukraine”, CIMSEC, April 12, 2022, https://cimsec.org/an-anti-access-denial-strategy-for-ukraine/.

[5] http://www.hisutton.com/images/Russia-Ukraine-Amphibious-Landings.jpg.

[6] “Ukrainian forces place mine near foreign ships moored at Mariupol port — defense ministry”, TASS, April 11, 2022, https://tass.com/defense/1435471.

[7] “Russian top brass confirms Mariupol seaport cleared of mines and back in business”, TASS, May 25, 2022, https://tass.com/defense/1455595?utm_source=tanakanews.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=tanakanews.com&utm_referrer=tanakanews.com. “Safe passage opens through Azov Sea – Russia”, RT, May 26, 2022, https://www.rt.com/russia/556121-azov-sea-safe-passage/.

[8] “Ukraine says no to Russia’s call for de-mining ports to allow grain shipments”, Pars Today, June 8, 2022, https://parstoday.com/en/about_us.

[9] Durden, op.cit.

[10] “Russia, Turkey discuss grain export corridor from Ukraine”, Aljazeera, June 7, 2022, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/6/7/russia-turkey-discuss-grain-exports-corridor-from-ukraine.

[11] “Putin says large Russian grain harvest to support higher exports”, Reuters, May 12, 2022, https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/putin-says-large-russian-grain-harvest-support-higher-exports-2022-05-12/

In today’s modern business age, you’re constantly surrounded by challenges that can appear at any time, and in order to effectively respond to them, you need to have strong leadership skills. If you’re having any problems with responding to these challenges adequately, or you just want to improve your leadership skills, then you may consider taking a leadership course. By taking a leadership development program, you’ll ensure your business has long-term success. This being said, here are five benefits of taking a leadership course as an entrepreneur to help you improve your skills and transform your business from good to great.

Builds self-confidence and wisdom

By taking a leadership training program, you can acquire the skills and techniques crucial for adequately responding to challenges and seeing them from a different perspective. If you look at these challenges from a different perspective, it helps in adding clarity to a demanding situation, builds wisdom, and boosts self-confidence as well. The opinion that great leaders are born and not made is not quite accurate. By taking a leadership training course, you’ll get the chance to apply different techniques and examples to see that with just a little hard work, everyone has the ability to become a great leader.

Helps in taking you to the next level

It’s well-known that most entrepreneurs never had any classes that thought them how to run a company. That’s why you now may not have a clear vision of where you want to go, and what will be the next step in your career. Perhaps there are plenty of opportunities you might have missed out on and didn’t consider, or maybe you haven’t fostered certain business relationships. What you should be focusing on is the progress you’ll gain as an entrepreneur. One way to accomplish this is by developing your skill set. Leadership programs give you an overview of what makes a good leader, and at the same time, allow you to put the mentioned skills to practice during the course or in any business setting.

Teaches skills essential to all leaders

What makes a good leader isn’t so easy to define, but there are certain traits that are essential to all leaders, which could be singled out. No matter what department those leaders are in, these skills can be related to any leadership role. Some of the most prominent leadership skills that could be highlighted are self-awareness and self-development, strategic thinking and innovation, ability to develop others, cross-cultural communication, decisive decision-making, organization, and thoughtfulness to name a few. All of these skills are relevant to any industry, so they’re equally necessary for sales, marketing, engineering, human resources, or design. There are many other leadership skills you can gain by enrolling in one of the leadership courses that suit your needs.

Develops emotional intelligence

One of the major personality traits of a good leader is a high level of emotional intelligence. By understanding how emotions influence others, you’ll be able to lead people effectively and competently. According to Daniel Goleman, author of the book “The New Leaders”, emotional intelligence is essential when it comes to reaching success as a leader. Emotional intelligence includes the ability to be smart about emotions and use empathy adequately to involve and empower others. Leadership courses that focus on the development of emotional intelligence are guaranteed to make you a better leader.

Trains you how to influence people

An essential part of any leadership course should be about providing you with the ability to influence those around you. By taking a leadership development program, you’ll learn the ways of motivating your team and the ways in which you can differentiate between strong and weak methods of influence. Also, you’ll learn about choosing a good team that’s adequate in delivering your vision, and the ways in which you can give orders while not coming off as either too domineering or too weak.

The desired result of a leadership course should be for participants to feel ready for higher levels of management and be skilled with a strong leadership strategy. Keep in mind that a training course should be a starting point or an extension in the process of leadership development, instead of just being a one-time event.

By Peter Minkoff

Peter is a lifestyle and travel writer at Men-Ual magazine, living between Ústí nad Labem and Antwerp. Follow Peter on Twitter for more tips.

Bohemian Wire-Haired Pointing Griffon, Photo: Libuše Rodová

The Český Fousek or Bohemian Wire-Haired Pointing Griffon was originally bred in the Czech Republic as a hunting dog. It is wirehaired and has the appearance of having a beard and mustache. A versatile pointer, Český Fousek has the qualities needed to hunt in the field, in the water and in the forest. These dogs are easy to train and very devoted to their owners.

The Bohemian wire-haired Pointing Griffon was first purebred during the Austro-Hungarian Empire, although the first mention of dogs similar to the Český Fousek can be found in the time of Charles IV, who bred them as hunting dogs. From around this time there are also references to the sale of these dogs to the regions of present-day Germany or Poland, but also much further afield, so it is likely that Pointers of European origin also have the genes of the original Český Fousek. The Bohemian wire-haired Pointing Griffon is considered one of the oldest breeds of Pointers in Europe. Vladimíra Tichá says the dog is both affectionate and hardworking, but is definitely not suited to an urban environment because it needs lots of space and exercise.

“Český Fousek is a dog for the Czech countryside. Many people may not fancy them as pets. But the fact is that they are hunting dogs, incredibly hardworking and persistent. When I think of this breed I always see them on a farm or a gamekeeper’s lodge; a wise and affectionate bearded dog lying under the table. That’s how it used to be”

The breed nearly died out in WWI when food was scarce but thanks to enthusiasts it was saved and its breeding continues to this day. Today it is a common breed in the Czech Republic and its popularity is growing abroad as well. There are 114 breeding males in the country and 250 breeding females. And 400 to 600 puppies are registered each year.

Read more here.

Previously unknown diaries written by a Lidice woman have been recently discovered by her relatives. Emílie Rohlová, one of the survivors of the Lidice massacre of 1942, started writing them after the war, when she returned from a concentration camp. She addressed them to her eight-year-old daughter, Boženka.

“No one has read my notebook yet. When you come back we will read it together. Now I will seal it up and hide it and you can open it, my little girl, by yourself. Please come back soon so I won’t be so alone. I kiss you in my heart and ask God to give you good health.”

This is an excerpt from a diary written by Emílie Rohlová, one of the 143 Lidice women who survived the destruction of the Czech village by the Nazis in June, 1942. During the night from 9 to 10 June, they shot her husband and later murdered her mother in Auschwitz.

Emílie Rohlová was also sent to a concentration camp, but she survived. Upon her return, she started to write diaries, addressing them to her eight-year-old daughter, Boženka, whom she hoped to meet again. She was unaware that her little girl was murdered by the Nazis in Chelmno in Poland along with the other Lidice children.

Veronika Kellerová is the mayor of Lidice:

“The notebook begins on July 16, 1945 and it is written in a form of short messages – what she was going through that day and how she was feeling.

“The words are really very powerful. She expresses her love for her husband but also a terrible sadness about how she misses everyone.”

Mrs Kellerová received the diaries just a few days before the 80th anniversary of the tragic events of June 1942. They were brought to her by Emilie Rohlová’s great-nephew Josef Kapitán.

Read the rest here.

Authors: Ruth Fraňková, Lucie Korcová

Zorro and Choko

The following article was born out of wanting to help other dog owners whose dogs struggle with stomach issues.

I am the proud owner of two Labradors – Zorro (14.5) and Choko (11). We have visited our vet Dr. Alexa many times due to their stomach issues. We tried many different dog food types and brands, some of which were expensive, and even tried mixing a few different types together, untill ten years ago, when the owner of the shop where I purchase their food recommended the Czech-produced BRIT brand, manufactured by VAFO. The dogs loved the food and I loved the results – their stomach issues disappeared. Even today, they eat ‘BRIT for Senior Dogs’ and we are all happy.

A few days ago, I learned that VAFO will soon be selling their food (including the BRIT product line) in the US too, and so this article was created. I wanted to share this with other dog owners who were dealing with similar issues but weren’t able to get a hold of this dog food in the United States.

I wish VAFO a lot of success in the US, and a long and healthy life to all dogs around the world.

Picture 1

VAFO to become sustainable – the largest czech pet food manufacturer has big plans

When František Bouška founded the pet food company VAFO in 1994, he probably had no idea how successful it would become in 28 years. VAFO is a family firm, managed by his son Pavel, which has grown into a company that is incredibly successful in the Czech and European markets. VAFO plants in European countries produce 180,000 tonnes of pet food annually, which is then exported to more than 85 countries around the world. Now, the company is setting its sights on the other side of the Atlantic, to the biggest pet food market in the world.

Picture 2

VAFO is taking important steps to secure a licence to enter new markets. The firm is currently working on obtaining the strict certification needed to export to the USA for its most modern plant in Číčenice. At the end of March, VAFO representatives will take part in Global Pet Expo, the largest American pet food trade fair in Florida, where thousands of companies present their diverse range of products.

The United States is not the only goal, though, and VAFO expects growth in other markets as well. In 2021, the company saw a 21% growth in revenues, and it plans to achieve at least the same level of growth in 2022 – though the company has to increase its production capacity to satisfy all of its customers’ demands. VAFO is building a new manufacturing plant in the Finnish city of Nokia that will be finished in the first quarter of 2023. This plant, which will cost more than 350 million CZK, will process local raw materials and employ more than 25 people. Additionally, VAFO increased production in its other European plants last year. In VAFO’s Czech plants, production went up by 30% in comparison to 2020, and the Polish Carry Pet Food Trzebielino and the Estonian Pandivere rose even more, by 45%.

Picture 3

One of VAFO’s most important goals is to make sure that its products are truly palatable to pets. To ensure this, the Číčenice plant in the Strakonice district has introduced a unique animal food processing technology that allows producing dry dog food containing 60% fresh meat. The remaining 40% is made up of vegetables, fruits, herbs and other “superfoods” (e.g. spirulina, sea buckthorn) beneficial to animal health. The premium quality is ensured in particular by a thermal twin extruder manufactured by the American company Wenger, which gently heat-treats raw materials and allows product identity monitoring whilst reducing energy consumption. (picture 1 and 2)

VAFO’s production programme also takes into account environmental concerns – sustainability is one of its priorities. The company aims to reduce CO2 emissions in all of its production processes, use up to 95% recyclable materials in its packaging, process 50% more sustainable raw materials, and encourages its employees to behave in an environmentally responsible way.

Picture 4

What are some practical examples? Solar panels have been installed at the Trzebielino production plant in Poland (picture 4), and wastewater from the sterilisation process is being recycled in Pandivere, Estonia. In 2022, VAFO also plans to reduce imports of raw materials from third countries, which will eliminate 240 tonnes of CO2 annually, an equivalent to about 2,000,000 kilometres driven by a car. The pet food will become increasingly planet-friendly as VAFO has began introducing animal treats containing insect protein (picture 5), whose environmental impacts are much lower than production from, for example, beef, pork or vegetable proteins. The employees make every effort to go fully digital, getting rid of any unnecessary printing.

Picture 5

For example, at the last ZOOMARK fair, VAFO did not use a single piece of printed promotional material; all information was accessible electronically by scanning a QR code. (picture 3)

Text: M. Zisso; Photo: Archive

Exactly eight decades ago, on June 10, 1942, the Central Bohemian village of Lidice was annihilated by Nazi forces in retaliation for the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich. About 340 men, women and children were murdered, the village flattened. Lidice became one of the best known examples of Nazi Germany’s brutality and its legacy survives in many forms to this day.

Two weeks after acting governor of Bohemia and Moravia Reinhard Heydrich was attacked by two undercover Czechoslovak soldiers in Prague, when an SS commando drove into the village of Lidice and began to systematically annihilate the entire settlement.

All of the males over the age of 15 were shot, while the vast majority of women and children would eventually be murdered in Nazi death camps. The village itself was levelled to the ground. Even the graveyard was destroyed.

The story of how Lidice came to suffer such a devastating fate has been recounted many times. It is a combination of Nazi frustration, bad luck and a meeting between Adolf Hitler and Karl Herman Frank, who was in charge of the crackdown following Heydrich’s killing.

But there is also a second story of Lidice, one that shows how much the savage action, propagated by the Nazis as a warning, resonated around the world, says historian Eduard Stehlik, the director of the Lidice Memorial.

“Three days after the attack, the US Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox said that when future generations ask why the allies fought this war then they will be told the story of Lidice. I think that was one of the first reactions. The destruction of the village resonated strongly both in North and South America.

Read more here.

Authors: Tom McEnchroe, Klára Stejskalová

During its presidency, the Czech Republic will focus on five closely linked priority areas:

1. Managing the refugee crisis and Ukraine’s post-war recovery
2. Energy security
3. Strengthening Europe’s defence capabilities and cyberspace security
4. Strategic resilience of the European economy
5. Resilience of democratic institutions

Managing the refugee crisis and Ukraine’s post-war recovery

Following Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, the Czech Presidency will support the EU’s efforts to defend Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity by using all instruments and programmes offered by the EU, including the strengthening of sanctions. The EU’s and its Member States’ political and military support for Ukraine is in our vital interest in order to ensure security in Europe. The Czech Presidency will work in favour of reaching a consensus on the granting of candidate status to Ukraine.

Russian aggression has caused the most massive refugee crisis since World War II. The EU must take all steps to help best deal with the unprecedented refugee wave, in particular of women and children from war-affected Ukraine. This will require the mobilisation of all available resources and expertise as well as their coordinated use.

The Czech Presidency will build on the principles of solidarity, efficiency and flexibility in this area. In cooperation with the European Commission, it will work on flexible transfers of funds and the creation of the necessary structures to assist the most affected Member States, organisations and the civil sector. Protecting children and ensuring their access to education will be a priority. For women’s participation in the labour market, sufficient pre-school and extracurricular capacity will need to be guaranteed. Coordination in ensuring healthcare will also be an important priority. The Czech Presidency will pay attention to effective European cooperation and solidarity so that the long-term integration of refugees into the societies of the Member States is successful.

Another important task of the Czech Presidency will be the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, focusing on restoring critical infrastructure, ensuring basic services, strengthening resilience and economic recovery and stability in Ukraine. Strong EU cooperation with Ukraine and securing the necessary financial resources across the free world will be crucial.

Energy security

The EU cannot be vitally dependent on countries that directly threaten its security and must therefore break its dependence on Russian gas, oil and coal. The Czech Presidency will put emphasis on the EU’s energy security issues, which are currently more pressing than the energy transition, and on the accelerated implementation of REPowerEU, an important part of which is diversification of sources including logistics, energy savings and acceleration of the transition to low-emission and renewable energy sources. The Czech Presidency is ready to work on the implementation of the regulation of gas reserves, i.e. filling storages in the run-up to winter, and the promotion of voluntary joint purchases, so that the EU uses its weight in a way similar to the purchase of vaccines.

The decarbonisation of the EU industry and the transition from natural gas to hydrogen represents an important goal requiring the implementation of an ambitious plan for the development of hydrogen infrastructure, storage and terminals. Fit for 55 creates the basis for decarbonisation. However, the Czech Presidency will focus especially on thorough implementation of the main short-term objective, i.e. remove dependence on Russian fossil fuels. The Czech Presidency will also deal with energy efficiency (EED) and the use of renewable energy. At the same time, the development of energy infrastructure is crucial, as it will strengthen the energy resilience of the EU as a whole. Finally, the Czech Presidency will deal with the role of nuclear energy in ensuring the EU’s energy security and meeting the EU’s climate goals.

In the field of transport, the Presidency will concentrate on reducing emissions, promoting environmentally friendly modes of transport and infrastructure for alternative fuels, as a key prerequisite for the development of clean mobility. At the same time, it will focus on the development of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) in order to facilitate transport flows across Member States, while supporting the decarbonisation of transport.

At the same time, the Czech Presidency will work on implementing an appropriate mix of instruments that will reduce the negative social and economic impact of high energy prices. The transition towards carbon neutrality must be accompanied by efficient social measures, for example by supporting energy savings in households. Energy savings are becoming increasingly important in view of inflationary pressures and rising energy prices.

Strengthening Europe’s defence capabilities and cyberspace security

Given the growing global instability, the Czech Presidency will focus on reinforcing security and defence capabilities, in particular in partnership with NATO. It will work specifically on supporting the implementation of key topics within the Strategic Compass. The development of long-term cooperation on strategic military systems is essential. In addition to ensuring the necessary capacities, including supporting capacities based on existing technologies, the Czech Presidency will pay attention to cooperation and investment in reducing technological dependence, in particular with regard to new and disruptive technologies, and to ensuring the resilience of critical value chains needed for these technologies. Strengthening related industrial capacities in the EU is also key.

At the same time, the Czech Presidency will address cyber threats and the geopolitical context of new technologies (and space). It will also focus on the rapid development of the so-called Hybrid toolbox, the fight against disinformation and the security of cyberspace. The Czech Presidency will pay particular attention to the cybersecurity of EU institutions, bodies and agencies and to the EU space-based secure communication system. We will stress that the EU, together with democratic partners, actively shapes the international debate in international organisations to improve the security and stability of cyberspace.

Strategic resilience of the European economy

The COVID-19 pandemic and Russian aggression vis-à-vis Ukraine have led to an inflation shock, increased market uncertainty and have exposed the fragility of global supply chains. The Russian invasion has caused the greatest disruption of commodity markets in the last half-century. The EU must drastically reduce its dependence on hostile or unstable regimes. Striving for full self-sufficiency does not seem to be an immediately viable option for the EU. In order to strengthen strategic resilience, targeted support for technological competitiveness based on own production capacities, together with the deepening of free trade with democratic nations in the world, is essential.

From food, medicines to semiconductor chips, supply chains and their vulnerability need to be understood in detail and their resilience must consequently be strengthened. The availability of strategic raw materials and components must be secured for European firms. Particular emphasis will be placed on the security of IT supply chains. The Czech Presidency will work on accelerating the process of concluding trade agreements with democratic states and on deepening transatlantic cooperation in the framework of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) with a focus on strategic cooperation, including joint measures for supply chain resilience.

Accelerating the digitalisation and automation of European industry is also essential, enabling the expansion of competitive production in the EU, with a particular emphasis on strategic sectors. A more efficient circular economy will contribute to reducing the need for imports of primary materials.

Green and digital transitions must be implemented in such a way as to promote convergence towards the most advanced regions. At the same time, there is a need to support the development of the skills of Europeans to adapt to changing circumstances, which is a prerequisite for the global competitiveness of the EU. Support through EU investment policies, in particular cohesion policy, will play a crucial role in all these areas.

Finally, the internal market needs to be further deepened, especially in services and the digital economy, while improving the business environment, including support for science, research and innovation, which will lead to increased competitiveness of European firms. With a view of qualitatively deepening the digital internal market, the Czech Presidency will strive for the adoption of a pan-European tool for the secure and trustworthy proving of a citizen’s identity, the so-called European Digital Identity Wallet, and the creation of an efficient and fair data market.

Resilience of democratic institutions

Russian aggression once again reminded us strongly that Europe’s long-term prosperity and stability are based on functioning democratic mechanisms. The Czech Presidency will therefore focus on strengthening the resilience of institutions that have a major influence on maintaining and developing values of democracy and the rule of law in the EU. These include, for example, transparent financing of political parties, the independence of mass media and an open dialogue with citizens.

The Conference on the Future of Europe has created a unique space for citizens and especially for young people to debate the future of Europe and provide input for future EU policies. The Czech Presidency will work on making use of these ideas and the creation of a space for the continuation of the debate. While implementing the European Year of Youth 2022, the Presidency will put emphasis on improving dialogue with young people and promoting their participation in political/policy processes.

In addition, the Czech Presidency will also focus on respecting and strengthening freedoms and European values in both offline and online environments. Levelling the playing field for European and non-European firms, in particular in the field of environmental and climate impacts and respect for human rights, will create the conditions for the further development of trade in open markets. Together with other democratic states, the Presidency will work to ensure that fundamental rights and freedoms are respected in the digital environment and will push for global standards to build on the so-called human-centric approach. In a number of areas related to new technologies such as artificial intelligence, the EU has the opportunity to take advantage of being the ‘first mover’, which has the possibility to lay down the rules of the global game. The Czech Presidency also wants to contribute to strengthening the transparency of cryptocurrencies and reducing the risk of their misuse.

In the international context, it will implement the European Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy, using relevant instruments, including potential sanction mechanisms. It will strengthen capacities to support civil society and independent media, as well as support partner countries’ resilience against cyber and hybrid threats.

Source

Photo: Klub přátel chodského psa

The Bohemian Shepherd Dog, along with the Prague Ratter, is one of the oldest Czech dog breeds. It was originally used as a guard dog and a herding dog. Today it is mainly kept as a family pet, due to its friendly and gentle nature. Ruth Fraňková has more in today’s edition of our mini-series dedicated to original Czech dog breeds.

The history of the Bohemian Shepherd Dog dates all the way back to the 1300s. The breed originated in the west Bohemian region of Chodsko, hence its Czech name Chodský pes, but it is also known as Bohemian Herder, Czech Sheepdog or Chodenhund.

Bohemian Shepherds were used by local frontiersmen – the Chods – to guard the southwestern border of the Bohemian kingdom, but they were also kept at homes to herd sheep and protect people’s dwellings.

The Bohemian Shepherd is a medium-sized dog, with long, thick fur and a rich undercoat, which allows it to survive in harsh weather conditions. It has a compact and well-proportioned body with high set, pointed ears, and a long, elegant neckline.

Bohemian Shepherds are classified as a working sheepdog breed, but thanks to their friendly nature and high intelligence, they are used for various purposes today: as service animals, therapy dogs, as well as for search and rescue and scent tracking, says breeder Vladimíra Tichá.

“A lay person might mistake the Bohemian Shepherd Dog for a German Shepherd, but it is smaller and has a straighter back and longer, black coat.”

“It is an absolutely wonderful breed for service training. You can use it for agility, but it can also accompany you on a skiing trip to the mountains and run along by your bike.”

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

A 9801 kg bell was cast in Austria on Friday to commemorate the 9,801 church and tower bells stolen from Czech territory and melted down for munitions during the Nazi occupation of WWII. The cost is being covered by a fundraising collection organized by Sanctus Castulus, an association of bell ringers in Prague’s Old Town. I spoke to its chairman, Ondřej Boháč, and started by asking him where the idea for the memorial bell came from.

“I’m a bell ringer myself and I saw the photos from 1942 of the collection point of the bells from the Czech Republic, and it looked like a bell cemetery. I was struck by those photos and decided to make a public fundraising collection to make a memorial for this historical event.”

Why do you think people should care about the fact that the Czech Republic has lost so many of its bells?

“In those bells were the efforts of generations, and it was a cultural disaster for us, so I think it’s important to commemorate this historical event to help us understand our history a little bit more.”

Why did it take so long for something like this to happen, for these bells to be commemorated?

“After the Second World War there was the Communist regime and there was no effort to replace the bells, so we had to wait until after the Velvet Revolution. I don’t know why in the 1990s no one opened this topic, but I saw these photos of the bell cemetery 10 years ago and from that time I had it in my head that it’s necessary to make a memorial. So it’s personal, and I don’t know why no one else in the past 30 years has approached this topic.”

How is the fundraising campaign going so far?

“The goal is to collect 12 million CZK and we have collected two thirds of this so far, so around 8 million CZK.”

Why did you choose the Grassmayr bell foundry in Austria to make the bell – did you try any Czech foundries first?

“We have four bell foundries in the Czech Republic, they are good but they are small, and they don’t have capacity for such a huge bell. They usually make bells around 1 ton or 300 kilos, but this is an enormous bell, so we had to look around at bigger bell foundries in Europe – in Poland, Austria, the Netherlands and so on. We had about four bell foundries in Europe and Grassmayr was our choice because, first of all, it was a good price – the money is from fundraising so you have to think about the price – and also, their bells are one of the best in the world.”

Read the rest here.

Author: Anna Fodor

The Czech Republic was the last EU country to bring in a comprehensive smoking ban. A ban on smoking in public places such as restaurants, bars, cafes, pubs, and bus stops came into effect in the Czech Republic on May 31 2017 – happily coinciding with World No Tobacco Day. On the day of its five-year-anniversary, Anna Fodor takes a look at what effects the ban has had on public health, attitudes, and the economy.

It was not so very long ago that you could still walk into a restaurant or café in the Czech Republic and find the room filled with cigarette smoke. Although a majority of the population had long been in favour of a ban on smoking in public places, numerous attempts to implement it had failed in the past. But five years ago, the long-awaited smoke-free legislation came in, in the face of significant political and tobacco lobby resistance.

Eva Králíková, a prominent researcher and associate professor at the Tobacco Addiction Treatment Centre of Charles University’s First Faculty of Medicine and Prague’s General University Hospital, says that the ban has had an overall positive effect on public health.

“This smoke-free legislation was very important for public health. We can observe a decline of a few percent in acute coronary events and asthma exacerbations.”

The effect of the ban on the incidence of cancer still remains to be seen, as cancer typically develops more slowly than coronary or respiratory problems and therefore any effects are expected to take at least a decade to appear in the population.

And what of the effect on the economy? Many restaurant and pub owners were worried that the ban would cause their customer numbers and profits to go down. But Králíková says these fears turned out to be unfounded.

See the rest here.

Author: Anna Fodor

“The Philippines is now open for foreign tourists,” said Ambassador Ombra T. Jainal as he opened the breakfast meeting on “The Philippines: It’s More Fun with You” at Prague Andaz Hotel on 25 May 2022.

Speaking before a number of Czech travel and tour companies at the venue and to another group of Philippine tourism companies via videoconference, Ambassador Jainal stressed that the Philippines is not only open but is more than ready to receive foreign tourists, especially those from the Czech Republic who are allowed to enter and stay in the Philippines without a visa for not more than 30 days, provided that they present a valid COVID-19 vaccination certificate and negative RT-PCR test result taken 48 hours prior to departure from initial point of origin, among others.

“The Philippines is close to achieving 70% of its 109 million total population vaccinated against COVID-19. As of 17 May 2022, 61.6% of our population are fully vaccinated, ranking the Philippines as 14th out of 205 countries in terms of total doses of vaccines administered. Our tourism industry actors are vaccinated against the virus; thus, ensuring the health and safety of both local and foreign tourists in the Philippines,” Ambassador Jainal said.

In a pre-recorded message, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat conveyed her appreciation of Czech tour agents in considering the Philippines as “a destination of choice for Czech travelers” and added that the Philippines is “offering at least 115 new tourism circuits across the country, featuring culinary, history, nature, wellness and farm tourism to cater to the needs of new normal travelers.”

Further, Tourism Director Ms. Margarita Patricia Valdes presented the latest developments in the Philippine tourism sector, including its thrust for continued sustainability, and select Philippine destinations, such as Siargao, Palawan, Cebu, Bohol, Manila, Banaue and Boracay.

Airline partners, Emirates and Philippine Airlines (PAL), presented the international and domestic routes for travelers from the Czech Republic to the Philippines. Emirates flies daily to the Philippines (Manila, Cebu and Clark) via Dubai and PAL services about 40 domestic routes open for foreign tourists to date.

Six Philippine companies participated in the virtual B2B meetings with the Czech tour agents after the first part of the program.

The breakfast meeting was a held to reinforce the successful participation of the Embassy in the international trade fair and exhibition Holiday World and Region World 2022 at PVA Expo Praha in Letnany on 18-20 March 2022. END.

Film Europe

The approaching summer is a symbol of the holidays, yet many of us stay in the cities, and a rich cultural program is prepared for them.

So before you pack your suitcase and fly off to explore Jerusalem, have fun in Tel Aviv or swim in the Dead Sea, go to the cinema, listen to the concert and don’t forget to have the book signed by Etgar Keret.

Enjoy the summer days with Israeli culture!

• Where is Anne Frank
• Avishai Cohen Trio
• Elon Turgeman
• Shalosh
• Metronome festival
• Arallu
• Book World – Etgar Keret
• KVIFF
• Mysterious bond
• Colours of Ostrava
• Machol Czechia
• Galit Liss
• Uriel Herman and Itamar Borochov
• Israel on the river – video

Václavské náměstí – discovered paving bricks made from tombstones

The Jewish Community in Prague is launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for a memorial monument made of tombstones that were carved up and used for the pavement of Prague’s Wenceslas Square during the communist regime. The monument will be created by famous Czech sculptor and artist Jaroslav Róna.

For many years, the Jewish community in Prague was questioning the origin of the paving in the lower part of the Wenceslas Square. There were indications that the cobblestones are made of tombstones from the Jewish cemeteries that were cut into pieces. In 2020, during the reconstruction of the lower part of the square, the tombstones were actually found. So far, paving stones with a total weight of 7 tons have been discovered. Thanks to an agreement signed by the City of Prague and the local Jewish community, the stones were returned and are now stored in the community’s facilities.

Details of paving bricks made from tombstones

However, the stones are not to remain hidden in the warehouse but are meant to become a building material for a new memorial made by Czech artists Lucie Rónová and Jaroslav Róna. As the composition and assembling are going to be costly, the total budget is estimated at 750 thousand CZK. Therefore, the Jewish community has applied for a subsidy at Prague’s cultural department, unfortunately unsuccessfuly, and has addressed some individual sponsors. Now it is asking the general public through the crowdfunding campaign with a target amount of 150 000 CZK. The funds will enable not only the construction of the memorial but also necessary modifications of the surroundings: new information panel and renovation of the tombstones in its vicinity.

7 tons of paving bricks coming from tombstones

The citizens of Prague and millions of tourists were unknowingly walking on the tombstones for decades. “We also ask those of you who care that the stones, as witnesses of past injustices, will regain their lost dignity. We kindly ask you to contribute to the redress of past crimes,” said the chairman of the Jewish community and the organizer of the campaign František Bányai.

Working on Memorial during May 2022

The Žižkov Jewish Cemetery that was partly destroyed due to the construction of the Žižkov TV Tower in the 80s still retains its mysterious atmosphere. And it is where the future memorial will be placed: on a grassy meadow between the trees. Jaroslav Róna designed the monument as a circular lens made out of 200 paving blocks with remnants of Hebrew and Czech inscriptions. Around the lens, low cobblestone walls of unequal height will dart into a circle like the rays of light. The central circular lens symbolizes the Holy Creator.

Preparations are already underway and the opening of the memorial will take place on 7 Semptemer 2022.

Visualization of the Memorial

The contributors of the campaign can choose from various rewards: guided tours in the Jewish Town, an event in the synagogue, or an original painting by Jaroslav Róna. The donors can also have their name written on the information board directly at the memorial. Click here to contribute: https://www.hithit.com/cs/project/10506/cs/pamatnik-z-rozrezanych-a-poslapanych-zidovskych-nahrobku/edit/editDetailedInfo

Related Articles:

– echo24.cz/a/SFWbL/rekonstrukce-vaclavskeho-namesti-odkryva-desive-praktiky-z-nedavne-minulosti?fbclid=IwAR30SxrZrPtj_CVpqcRrZ54ARBMg4SHCtqNuszDqQMPZl_N_s8oa8U_voUg

– https://www.novinky.cz/domaci/clanek/v-centru-prahy-se-nasly-stovky-kostek-z-zidovskych-nahrobku-40323001

– https://www.denik.cz/regiony/prvni-krok-k-naprave-dlazebni-kostky-z-nahrobku-ulozi-na-zidovskem-hrbitove-20200130.html

The Czech Republic’s six-month presidency of the EU gets underway in exactly one month’s time. In parallel the country’s international network of Czech Centres will be running a whole host of events in the second half of 2022, with the motto Vision for Europe. Final preparations are now being made for the Czech Republic’s presidency of the Council of the European Union, which will run from July 1 to the end of the year.

While Prague will host important summits and other events, the global Czech Centres network will also be extremely active in the latter half of 2022.

The Czech Centres’ plans were presented at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, with the key speaker being Minister Jan Lipavský.

After his address the minister outlined the broader priorities of the Prague government going into the country’s second presidency of the EU since it joined the bloc 18 years ago.

“The main task of our presidency will be covered by five topics, which overarch all the efforts which the Czech Republic will have.

“Of course we have to reflect the current state of Europe and the main geopolitical issues which we are solving right now.

“So it will be energy security, it will be war in Ukraine, it will be the resilience as such.

“And especially in the case of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs we will be putting quite a lot of emphasis on the topic of Ukraine and helping Ukraine to win the war, and helping Ukraine to continue with their European ambitions.”

Read the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

The Ministry of Culture is looking into a complaint regarding the 2018 reconstruction of Prague’s famous astronomical clock. Specifically the complaint targets the copy of the original calendar on the Old Town Clock by Josef Mánes. According to Milan Patka from the Club for Old Prague, some of the figures on the calendar have changed dramatically.

The unveiling of the reconstructed Old Town Clock in 2018, was accompanied by much pomp and ceremony, but it has only now come to light that the copy of Josef Mánes’ calendar, admired by millions of tourists all year round, is a far cry from the original, which is housed in the Prague City Museum.

At first glance, the bright and shiny new calendar on the lower dial of the Prague astronomical clock is a successful copy of the original, but a closer inspection reveals that the author of the copy -artist Stanislav Jirčík – took a lot of creative license in reproducing Mánes’ work.

According to Milan Patka, from the Club for Old Prague, which filed a complaint about it, the changes are considerable and there was no good reason for them.

For example, instead of the virginal figure in the sign of Libra that is on the original, the new calendar depicts an older woman with grey hair. Similarly, a youth in a cloak has been replaced by a middle-aged woman with a different hairstyle. Other portraits have also been transformed and have different hair, beards or expressions.

See more here.

Author: Daniela Lazarová

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. Dr J Scott Younger is a President Commissioner at Glendale Partners and member of IFIMES Advisory Board. In his text entitled “China – a political view” he is writing about China’s geopolitical ambitions.

China – a political view

I read Dr Mohamad Zreik[2] interesting and comprehensive article on the growth of China’s economy. It has come a long way since the days of Mao Tse Tung and the days of his communist experiment, the Long March, when millions died. The years, that followed Mao, set the path from which the economy took off and it has succeeded impressively as Dr Zreik writes. The Chinese also really went on a charm offensive, particularly if the country being ‘pursued’ had natural resources requiring to be exploited, e g Africa.

In the last ten years or so, once Xi Jinping became the head of the Party, he strengthened his base, to the extent that after he was completing his two terms as leader as per the constitution, when he would be stepping down, his base was strong enough for him to be considered again, this time as President for life.

In 1997, the British, in accordance with the agreement signed one hundred years earlier, under some duress it has to be said, handed Hong Kong back to China. Hong Kong largely unfettered by government, had developed into a highly successful trading hub and the citizens were somewhat apprehensive of the future under the hand of China. They managed to secure a deal for 50 years that said there would be ‘one government, two systems’, which was interpreted as ‘business as usual’ by the Honkies as the people of Hong Kong are called. Unfortunately for them, Xi’s government had been turning more authoritarian if not dictatorial under his direction. It started with Beijing not liking the freedom of the press in Hong Kong and trying to suppress content especially that which was critical of Beijing in any way. That, in turn brought out protests with students and the younger generation demonstrating in very large numbers. Tiananmen square being a remembered case in point. The demonstrations became larger and more riotous and the Chinese response became tougher with some more ardent of the opponents being jailed.

Carrie Lam latterly was appointed head of the legislative assembly (Legco) and she became the voice of Beijing much to protests and grumbles of the people. She has recently stepped aside and her appointed successor, John Lee, a retired police officer, is even more of a hard-liner, emphasising again the dictate of the Chinese government. There is no going back; one can say goodbye to the free-wheeling days of a democratic Hong Kong. Gone is the promise of 50 years with ‘one government, two systems’.

In the past decade, the plight of the 12 million Moslem Uighurs, who live in the western province of Xinjiang, has been brought to the fore although the Chinese authorities have tried to suppress their actions from outside view. The Uighurs are an embarrassment to Beijing and they perceive them as an internal Islamic threat to the Chinese government way, whether they are or not, probably not. They use this as a justification to their persecution of the Uighurs and brainwashing camps in the best Orwellian tradition. Beards and veils are banned.

Over the past few years, the Chinese have taken hold, somewhat by stealth, of the highly strategic Spratly Islands, which boast reserves of hydrocarbons and straddle shipping lanes to Northeast Asia. They have gradually been developing Islands with reclamation of dredged sand and establishing them into military outposts, although they said at the start they would not. These islands, which lie closer to the eastern ASEAN countries – Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei – and which dispute the Chinese claim, and the ASEAN body itself are mildly alarmed at China spreading its reach. Furthermore, the USA is now paying closer attention to China’s ambitions. But possession is nine/tenths of the law as the old saying goes!

In recent days the Solomon Islands, which are based in the western Pacific among the many islands that are based there and historically tended to lean towards Australia signed an agreement with China and sent alarm bells off in Canberra, not that the recent defence pact which goes by the name of AUKUS – Australia, the UK and the US – pleases the Chinese.

With China stepping up their demands on absorbing Taiwan by 2025, the people of Taiwan are rightly concerned. For over 70 years they have managed to follow an independent path, ever since Chiang Kai Shek fled there with his supporters after losing the fight to control China to Mao’s communists in the days following WWII. With US help the country has developed into a prosperous independent state. Now the eyes of Xi are on taking it back under direct authoritarian control, as per Hong Kong, after the Qing dynasty handed over the island of Formosa albeit with reluctance to the Empire of Japan at the treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895, following their war.

Economy is concentrated confidence

Again, in the last few years, China’s economy has grown and with it the confidence this engenders. It has proposed a modern version of the old Silk Road by which China was connected to the countries to the west. Marco Polo, the 13th/14th century merchant and explorer, used this route to link up Venice in the Mediterranean to the Mongol court of Kublai Khan in China. He spent considerable time at the court of the emperor and brought back an understanding of Chinse ways and products to the west.

Xi Jinping raised this opportunity in 2013 as the Belt & Road Initiative but it is slow to take off, understandably as it involves several countries. However, a long goods train has shown that it can be done, a journey time of 4 days between Xian and Rotterdam. It could save considerable time compared with sea transport, but there are many political and relatable administrative questions to be answered first.

The focus had to be changed dramatically, however, when President Vladimir Putin invaded his neighbour, after saying that his war games close to the border with Ukraine should not be interpreted as anything more than that, on 24th February this year. Just before, he attended the beginning of the Winter Olympic Games, held this year at Beijing. He met with Xi to discuss his intentions for the war, or special military operation as he calls it. Putin was convinced that he was going to win quickly and would give that impression. He wanted China to understand that he had to go to war to defend his country and wanted China to watch his back. Having obtained sufficient assurances, he returned to Moscow and ordered the invasion. Now he is still fighting as the Ukrainians have put up unexpected stiff resistance, and NATO countries, although not directly involved since Ukraine is not a member, is helping Ukraine with arms; and mercenaries are also lending their support. A long war is now the threatened outcome with the Russian bear losing and embarrassed. Before that, will Putin survive?

Putin says he was always concerned about having the defence alliance of NATO, which was only put into effect to counter Russian expansion at the end of WWII, against the border with Russia, and Ukraine, rightly fearful of their neighbour’s intentions, had made noises about joining NATO. NATO is now on high alert and other countries are likely to join – Sweden and Finland. Putin now has the very response he was hoping to avoid.

But what can China take from this? China should realise now that for its expansionist aims across the world, little help will come from Russia. They have been tested and found wanting. Xi can now plan accordingly and provided he can resolve his other problems, including his handling of the omicron variation of the coronavirus, which is being watched, for instance by the WHO, he will be free to exercise his plans of which Taiwan is on the medium-term horizon. The one ’good’ thing of the Ukraine situation is that the NATO countries are now awake from their peacetime slumber. Or so we would hope.

About the author:

Dr J Scott Younger, OBE, is a professional civil engineer; he spent 42 years in the Far East undertaking assignments in 10 countries for WB, ADB, UNDP. He published many papers; he was a columnist for Forbes Indonesia and Globe Asia. He served on British & European Chamber boards and was a Vice Chair of Int’l Business Chamber for 17 years. His expertise is infrastructure and sustainable development and he takes an interest in international affairs. He is an International Chancellor of the President University, Indonesia. He is a member of IFIMES Advisory Board. Lived and worked in Thailand from 1978 to 1983 and visited Burma, Bangladesh and Nepal for projects.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect IFIMES official position.

Ljubljana/Glasgow, 20 May 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.

[2] China’s Economic Development: A Successful Model in the Rise of Nations https://www.ifimes.org/en/researches/chinas-economic-development-a-successful-model-in-the-rise-of-nations/5043?

IN THE RHYTHM OF PASSION

8./9. 6. 2022 – 19:30 Municipal House, Smetana Hall

BÉLA BARTÓK Romanian Folk Dances
PABLO DE SARASATE Carmen Fantasy Op. 25, Gypsy Airs Op. 20
ZOLTÁN KODÁLY Dances of Galánta
MAURICE RAVEL Bolero

Pavel ŠPORCL | violin
PRAGUE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Rastislav ŠTÚR | conductor

Link: https://www.fok.cz/en/rhythm-passion

Photo:

The month of June longs for passion. Even in music we want passion. So real experts need to be called upon to take the floor. Pavel Šporcl has played enough gypsy melodies to make his bow red hot. Rastislav Štúr is full of ferocious Slovak temperament. Listening to the eastern and southern tunes and their intoxicating rhythms, we will be surprised how much they have in common – the yearning for the sun, the night, speed and dizziness. On Republic Square, you must break down the barriers and enter Smetana Hall wearing a bolero. Does anything else go better with Bolero?

THOMAS HAMPSON FOR PRAGUE

15./16. 6. 2022 – 19:30 Municipal House, Smetana Hall

SYLVIE BODOROVÁ Lingua angelorum, song cycle
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Sheherazade, symphonic suite Op. 35

Thomas HAMPSON | baritone
PRAGUE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Tomáš BRAUNER | conductor

Link: https://www.fok.cz/en/thomas-hampson-prague-0

Photo:

A language comprehensible to everybody, a link to all languages and a connecting line between earth and heaven – that is what music is for the composer Sylvie Bodorová. According to her, music reaches where no words can and that is how the title of her new song cycle Lingua angelorum came about. She drew inspiration from the era of Rudolf II, when the alchemists John Dee (1527–1609) and Edward Kelley (1555–1597) attempted to communicate with higher powers using an artificial language, the Lingua angelorum. Bodorová has composed the cycle as a commission for the world renowned American baritone Thomas Hampson.

The symphonic suite Sheherazade composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1888 combines two features typical of Russian music in general and of Rimsky-Korsakov in particular: dazzling, colorful orchestration and an interest in the East, which figured greatly in the history of Imperial Russia, as well as orientalism in general. The name “Scheherazade” refers to the main character Scheherazade of the One Thousand and One Nights. It is one of Rimsky-Korsakov’s most popular works.

Photo: Radio Prague International

Thanks to contracts signed under the communist regime, the Russian Embassy received a vast amount of real estate in Prague, Karlovy Vary and other Czech cities free of charge to be used for diplomatic purposes. With just six Russian diplomats left in the country, the Czech Foreign Ministry says it is time to revise property relations and make the embassy accountable for how the property is used.

The Russian school building in Bubeneč, a section of Stromovka park, 200 flats intended for diplomats and a villa in the luxury quarter of Jevany on the Prague suburbs, those are just some of the several dozen lucrative properties that are at the disposal of the Russian Embassy. Contracts dating back to communist governments have either transferred ownership of the properties to the embassy or given it the right to use them indefinitely for free.

With Czech-Russian relations at freezing point and just a handful of Russian diplomats left in the country, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský concluded that it is high time to revise property relations, setting up a working group to look into how the property afforded to the Russian embassy is being used in the present day.

See the rest here.

Author: Daniela Lazarová

DURING MILANO DESIGN WEEK 2022, DEUTSCHE TELEKOM DESIGN & CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE WILL PRESENT THEIR CONCEPT CONNECTIVITY PROJECTS, CONCEIVED WITH STRATEGIC DESIGN AGENCY LAYER, AND AUGMENTED REALITY PACKAGING CONCEPTS AND MAGENTAZUHAUSE SMART HOME APPLICATION DESIGNED BY THE DEUTSCHE TELEKOM DESIGN & CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE TEAM.

Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience team will be making their debut at Milano Design Week from 6 to 12 June 2022 to exhibit the product concepts designed with LAYER.

During Milano Design Week 2022, Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience is presenting Connectivity Concept, a line of products born of a design collaboration with Strategic design agency LAYER led by Benjamin Hubert, which provides a new styling for the devices used in contemporary homes: the collection comprises a router, a mesh repeater, a set-top box-soundbar with webcam, a set-top box and a remote control, fruit of a meticulous research on materials characterized by pared-down lines and a discreet interface.

Connectivity is the capacity of various systems to connect and communicate among themselves for the purpose of exchanging information. This simple concept accompanies our everyday lives: the technological tools we use every day are increasingly linked by an infinite network of interdependent connections, in a harmonious and fluid flow that integrates digital and analogue devices in our everyday lives and actions.

Another novelty to be presented during Milano Design Week 2022 is the Augmented Reality Packaging project, which demonstrates that augmented reality can be a precious ally for researching eco-sustainable solutions. Patented by Deutsche Telekom, this new packaging rethinks our way of designing the outer wrapping of a technological product, to become the conveyor of a new meaning: no longer just a wrapper for preserving the content, but a tool for explaining the content and its functions. This packaging is characterized by the sole print of a QR code: by scanning it with the video camera of a smartphone it is possible to check the contents of the package, consult the instruction manual, check the product characteristics, launch the device, and download the updates. In this way, the amount of paper required for technical manuals is considerably reduced.

This solution is the fruit of a new approach which enables a saving in packaging materials, in terms of paper, ink and processing. Moreover, it offers the possibility to connect directly with the user and guide them towards a personalized experience of unboxing and product configuration.

Thanks to this new project, Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience aims at becoming a benchmark for sustainability, by rethinking the entire production process and providing a complete and immersive experience to the user.

In our everyday lives, in which digital solutions provide a tangible tool for simplifying and optimizing the running of a home, Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience designed the new MagentaZuHause (Magenta at Home) smart home application to support everyday activities. Functions range from Parents notifications when theirs family member arrive back home from school, for greater security, to an offering of to-do lists and the remote management of home devices, such as lighting or routers. MagentaZuHause is also connected simply and intuitively to a wide range of devices that are useful for the home. The app is available for Smartphone, tablet, and Magenta TV.

Technology accompanies the social, industrial, and economic evolution in course: Connectivity Concept, Augmented Reality Packaging and MagentaZuHause offer tangible customer centric and user-friendly solutions that pave the way to new opportunities and future scenarios waiting to be discovered.

Connectivity Concept designed in collaboration with LAYER – Technical sheet

The router has a mirror-polished finish that conceals the interface when switched off: the access ports are positioned on an external adaptor that can be placed out of sight and the cables concealed. The on/off buttons are located at the back while the logo is screen-printed on the front.

The router may be connected to as many as six mesh repeaters to amplify the signal throughout the home; the natural woodwork represents the synthesis of research into sustainable and eco-friendly materials. The display is simply activated by touching the surface and the base can be removed to secure the repeater to the wall.

The set-top box-soundbar with webcam connects to the TV and provides a high-quality audio outlet and access to channels in streaming. A webcam can be housed on the set top box and the face tracking function optimizes its orientation when in use.

The set-top box is the device enabling access to the streaming video once it is connected to the television: its pared-down lines harmonize with the interior decor and a slight luminescence indicates when it is activated.

Both the set-top box-soundbar and the set-top box may be managed by remote control which optimizes user interaction thanks to a comfortably sized trackpad which, once positioned on a surface, identifies the correct balance for a more immediate response.

Company profile

Deutsche Telekom, one of the world’s leading integrated telecommunications companies, probes the future role of technology and services: the response to needs and their anticipation becomes the driver of research into new solutions and innovative ideas in the ambit of technology.

The in-company Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience department reflects on new consumer needs while a multidisciplinary team of designers, engineers, and developers experiments new concepts applied to everyday life in which technology and design are combined and integrated to improve the user’s experience and use of technology.

Deutsche Telekom operates in over 50 countries worldwide with about 248 million mobile telephony customers, 26 million landlines and 22 million broadband lines.

The company supplies services and products for landlines and mobile telephony, Internet and IPTV, as well as IT solutions for companies, amounting to an overall turnover of 108.8 billion Euros relating to fiscal year 2021. Deutsche Telekom has grown from being a traditional telephony operator to a company specialized in telecommunications services and digital solutions to satisfy a diversified range of requirements, from private users to complex corporate clients: services include the legacy systems, cloud-based IT and tools such as infrastructures, platforms and custom-designed software.

Deutsche Telekom is an avant-garde company in the ambit of new business models and digitalization projects such as data analysis, the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence.

The company’s research and philosophy go beyond the confines of technology to address social, ethical, and ecological issues, by operating responsibly to provide sustainable, fair, and secure products.

Deutsche Telekom services are aimed at interconnecting people, making their lives safer and more secure, promoting equal opportunities, and reducing energy consumption to save primary resources. More specifically, the #GreenMagenta programme was set up for the purpose of conveying this approach and promoting products that offer specific advantages in terms of sustainability.

For over ten years, Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience, in the Bonn corporate headquarters, Berlin and Darmstadt has experimented digital solutions and physical products in the Design Gallery: on these premises, engineers and designers work side by side to define the paradigms of the future, by studying the impact of technology in private and professional spheres. A team of experts, engaged in a debate on innovative concepts and digital solutions, interact with end-users to optimize their experience.

To cross the national borders of this avant-garde hub of experimentation and design and to address new scenarios and markets, Deutsche Telekom Design & Customer Experience has opened a new branch in Barcelona: it is here that service design acts as a driving force to improve the user’s relationship with technology in a holistic approach that embraces all the interactions individuals engage in with the environment and with the company.

For more information contact:
International Press Office
Rota&Jorfida | Communication and PR
Via Fabio Filzi 33, Milano
T. +39 02 39 29 76 76
press@rotajorfida.com
rotajorfida.com

Photo: M. Gojda, Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences

The Czech state began to form around the 9th century AD. This process was crucially influenced by the Přemyslids, Bohemia’s ruling dynasty which had control over Czech territory for more than 400 years. But what do we actually know about this period? How can archaeology help us understand it? And what were the key moments in the Přemyslid quest for power?

The Central Bohemian Přemyslid heartland

The iconic image of Prague Castle, perched atop a dominant hill overlooking the Vltava River, is not just a postcard favourite, but perhaps also a national symbol for many a Czech who looks up at it. It is, after all, almost as old as the nation itself.

Those who have visited Prague Castle may recall the Plečnik Obelisk on the third courtyard, which stands around the spot that was once called Žiži, where Přemyslid rulers would be sworn in and sat upon a crowning stone. It is also around this area that the oldest church in Prague, the Church of Saint Mary, was built shortly after the first Přemyslid duke converted to Christianity.

See the rest here.

Authors: Tom McEnchroe, Loreta Vašková

LJUBLJANA, 17 May 2022 – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]), Ljubljana, is pleased to announce that the book “Diplomacy in Focus: Selected Articles 1990 – 2021” has been published. The respected author Dr. Milan Jazbec, professor of diplomacy and ambassador, poet and writer, employed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia, presents in it a selection of his contributions from the previous three decades. This is the first book from his trilogy “Selected Scientific Works and other Contributions by Milan Jazbec”. The second book with the title “Each Day Comes as New” brings a selection of the author’s essays and forewords from the same period, while the third one “Security, Defence and Slovenia” offers his selected contributions from 2001-2021. Both books will be published in June, also by IFIMES.

In the very focus of scientific work of Dr. Jazbec is comprehensive research of diplomacy. Apart from its theorizing, he pays primary attention to the establishment, development and functioning of the Slovene diplomacy, which he is as a diplomat an active participant since its beginning. He is also paving the way for the initial research in the field of sociology of diplomacy and of the postmodern diplomacy as well as on diplomacy and literature. Diplomacy is also part of his fictional writing, where is he finishing his trilogy of novels on diplomacy with the title Lady in White; the first part Rainbow beyond the Soul and the second one In a Search of a Lost Soul have been translated in many languages. His work is an outstanding contribution to the further development of diplomatic studies in Slovenia and in the broader international frame. His special attention goes also for Slovene language as a language of diplomacy.

This trilogy of Professor and Ambassador Dr. Jazbec presents a comprehensive selection from his rich and broad scientific opus of more than seventy published books and more than 130 articles on diplomacy and related topics, all in fifteen languages. Dr. Jazbec was the Slovene Ambassador to North Macedonia (2016-2020) and to Turkey (2010-2015), accredited also to Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria as well as State Secretary at the Slovene Ministry of Defense (2000-2004). He teaches diplomacy at the Nova University in Ljubljana, gave lectures among others at Columbia University, Diplomatic Academy of Vienna and faculties for political sciences in Sarajevo and Zagreb; he was visiting professor and various universities in North Macedonia and Turkey. He is member of the Slovene PEN Center and senior lecturer at Diplo Geneva.

View selected pages of the first book here

https://leeloop.ams3.digitaloceanspaces.com/ifimes/7305/anqkIaessYe3Mrz9y2msgt5Ag6v1Cp-metaSmF6YmVjIE1pbGFuIFBydmEga25qaWdhIHN0cmFuaS5wZGY%3D-.pdf

Ljubljana, 17 May 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.

Attachments:

jazbec-milan-prva-knjiga-strani.pdf

ARABFEST will take place from 18 to 28 May in Pilsen and from 8 to 12 June in Prague, offering films, theatre, educational lectures and tastings of Arabic cuisine.

Foto: © MZV ČR / MFA CZ

Jan Lipavský, Minister of Foreign Affairs together with Vlastimil Válek, Minister of Health, opened the Czech-African Health Forum, which is attended by African representatives, including Ministers of Health. The Forum will help strengthening the EU-Africa cooperation and will serve as guidance for future Czech-African ties in healthcare.

Česko-africké zdravotnické fórum, které se zaměří na zvládání pandemie, financování a posilování zdravotnického sektoru, zahájil v Černínském paláci 18. května ministr zahraničí Jan Lipavský. Na fóru české firmy prezentovat své technologie a znalosti v této oblasti africkým partnerům.

Ministerstvo zahraničních věcí pomáhá českým zdravotním systémům proniknout do Afriky

Radek Halíček, managing partner of KPMG Czech Republic, has been elected the new chairman and managing partner of KPMG’s Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) network. He will be responsible for KPMG offices in 15 countries. His goal will be to strengthen KPMG’s collective strategy as well as the position of the CEE region within the global network.

Halíček will oversee KPMG’s offices in the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania and now Ukraine. Together, they employ over 6,000 people. Halíček wants to turn the KPMG network in the CEE region into an entity with a turnover of more than €1 billion.

“The CEE region has come a long way in the last thirty years. KPMG has been at the forefront of restoring free enterprise in these countries. We are now a fully-fledged part of the global market economy, but I want to strengthen our region’s position within the global KPMG network,” said Halíček. “In my new role, I will also focus on continuing the assistance that KPMG’s Central European staff have provided to our colleagues in Ukraine. Collaboration on KPMG’s global commitment to carbon neutrality is also important to us,” he added.

KPMG’s Ukrainian office has now been integrated into the CEE region. Previously, it was grouped together with Russia and Belarus, but the KPMG network decided to close its offices there immediately after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Halicek, an expert in financial institutions and capital markets, has been with KPMG since 2006. He is the founder of KPMG Legal. In 2016, he became managing partner with overall responsibility for KPMG’s Czech operations.

Halíček graduated from the Faculty of Law at Charles University and studied several technical fields, accounting, and management. He is a member of the supervisory board of the science-supporting Neuron Foundation, holds a transport aircraft pilot’s licence, and devotes his spare time to the martial arts.

Prague councillors have voted in favour of stripping the late Soviet military commander Ivan Konev, who led the Red Army’s liberation of Prague, of his honorary citizenship. Among the reasons for the move is his repressive role within the Communist bloc in the years that followed. Others, who were honored in the past, have suffered a similar fate.

In recent years, Czech politicians have been taking steps to remove symbols connected with the Soviet era and Russia’s war on Ukraine has only strengthened that resolve.

On Monday, Prague city councillors approved a document proposing that the Soviet military commander Ivan Konev be stripped of his honorary citizenship.

Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib explained the move, which still needs to be endorsed by the Prague City Assembly, to Czech Radio:

“Over time, facts have come to light proving that Konev wasn’t an upstanding man, therefore he cannot be an honorary citizen. For example after the end of the Second World War he decided to bomb Mladá Boleslav, murdering 150 civilians, including children.”

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Greece received another important distinction for the video of GNTO’s winter advertising campaign “Greece Does Have a Winter”. It was honored with the Silver Award at the 4th International Tourism Film Festival Africa, in the category “Tourist Destination: Country”.
In the same competition, the video of the advertising campaign of the Peloponnese Region “Peloponnese. Greece beyond the obvious” was also honored with a Silver Award in the category “Tourist Destination: Region”.

The successful winter advertising campaign of GNTO and the Ministry of Tourism aimed to promote the beauty of Greek mainland destinations and the rich experiences that winter travelers can enjoy inland. The strengthening and promotion of winter tourism in the country is one of the main pillars of EOT’s communication strategy for the promotion of Greece abroad. Greece is a tourist destination for the whole year!

The 4th International Tourism Film Festival Africa (ITFF) took place between 4 and 7 May 2022 in Cape Town with 315 audiovisual producers from 55 countries. The jury consisted of professionals specializing in marketing, tourism and audiovisual media. International winners include audiovisual productions from Australia, Austria, Croatia, Fiji, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, the Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Slovenia, , Spain and Uganda.

ITFFA aims to honor the best travel films and documentaries from around the world and to stimulate the development of the tourism audiovisual industry. Its thematic categories cover various sectors of tourism, such as Destinations, Products and Services. The festival is organized in collaboration with the International Committee of Tourism Film Festivals (CIFFT) and the city of Cape Town

More Information:

>> Watch the GNTO’s award-winning video her: https://youtu.be/dXfBVNKqKRM
>> More about the International Tourism Film Festival Africa can be seen on the official website of the event https://itff.africa/2022-winners-tourism-international-competition/

The Czech Republic is due to take up the rotating presidency of the European Council in July of this year. Alongside preparations for the daunting tasks ahead at a difficult time for Europe and the world at large, there are plans for a series of cultural and promotional events. I asked Marek Zeman, spokesperson for the minister of European affairs, what is in the pipeline.

“A number of cultural events will take place both in Prague and in Brussels. We are preparing events in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and through these events we are supporting established Czech artists and young talent.”

I understand that the Czech EU presidency will open with a concert at the Prague Rudolfinum concert hall?

“Yes, the opening concert will take place at the Rudolfinum on July 8th. Czech piano virtuoso Tomáš Kačo will perform a piece that he composed specially for the Czech EU presidency called “Stronger Than Yesterday“. He will be accompanied by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.”

And there is to be a “Concert for Europe” in September as well?

“That’s right. Prague Sounds is preparing a special presidency Concert for Europe featuring Smetana, Dvořák, Janáček performed by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. The concert will take place on a floating stage on the Vltava on September 2 and it will be open to the broad public.”

See the rest here.

Author: Daniela Lazarová

Top international credit rating agency Fitch has downgraded its outlook for the Czech economy from stable to negative. This has sparked fears it could also cut the Czech Republic’s credit rating – only adding to its mounting economic woes. I discussed the revised outlook with Lukáš Kovanda, chief economist at Trinity Bank.

“The main reason is the situation in Ukraine and its potential impact on the Czech economy, especially its energy supplies.

“This is because of our high dependency on Russian gas and to a large extent on Russian oil.

“So there is a fear amongst the international finance community that an interruption of those supplies could bring a big crash to the Czech economy.”

There’s also speculation that after it had almost a quarter century of upward trajectory, Fitch may also revise downwards the Czech Republic’s credit rating from the current AA-, which is the second highest level. How likely is that, do you think?

“I think now it’s quite likely, maybe 60 percent, for the next 12 months, I guess, because the current situation is very pessimistic for the Czech economy, because of our proximity to Ukraine and to Russia, and our strong dependence on Russian energy supplies.

See the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

The UN General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly for the Czech Republic to replace Russia on the Human Rights Council, the United Nations’ leading human rights body. The Czech Republic’s term starts immediately with the council due to meet for a special session on Thursday to examine the deteriorating human rights situation in war-torn Ukraine.

Ever since the Fiala administration took office late in 2021, it has been striving to reembrace the values championed by the late Czech president Václav Havel. It has stressed the need to place human rights above economic interests and its support for Ukraine has been unswerving and generous. Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said he was very happy about the result of the election, which would enable the country to do even more in the field of human rights.

“This is a great opportunity for us and I think that it is symbolic that we are replacing Russia on the UN Human Rights Council; a country that has committed heinous crimes on the territory of Ukraine. Our place on the council will enable us to take our human rights policy priorities further.”

See the rest here.

Author: Daniela Lazarová

Discover Israel through its culture, food and fun. Experience Israel on the Vltava River!

The first Israel on the river will take place on May 14 and 15 at the Strelecky island. Enjoy authentic Israeli cuisine or hire a blanket and picnic by the riverside. Experience a truly inspirational weekend filled with music, theater, workshops and talks. Take the opportunity to play backgammon or try the real beach matkot. We will also provide many fun activities for kids.

At the same time, you can support local manufacturers of designer items, delicacies, fashion and accessories with Israeli roots. Enjoy them outdoors at a green beautiful place on the Vltava river.

See more here.

Photo: Ondřej Tomšů, Radio Prague International

The night of April 30th, halfway between the spring equinox and the summer solstice, is associated with warding off evil spirits. In the Czech Republic, the occasion is traditionally observed by lighting a bonfire on a hill and burning an effigy of a witch, to represent the driving away of evil. This celebration dates back to Celtic times and is still popular in Czechia today.

Source

The Russian invasion of Ukraine poses some challenges for students of International Law and Diplomacy in terms of what they have were taught and what they have come to expect of the discipline. Since World War II, there has been no major wars in Europe, and despite Russia’s incursions into Georgia in 2008, the annexation of Crimea, and support for separatist groups in Donbas in 2014, Europe has remained relatively peaceful. For the past two years Europe and the international community have remained focused on mitigating the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and trying to overcome the economic fallout from the virus. No one expected a major war in Europe, as we see with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Hence, the Russian invasion is a reflection point for both faculty and students, as it makes teaching and studying International Relations a lot more difficult.

The core principles of the United Nations international legal order established after WWII (the United Nations Charter) are: Sovereign equality of states (Art. 2.1); peaceful settlement of disputes (Art. 2.3); non-use of force (Art. 2.4); non-intervention in the internal affairs of other states (Art. 2.7); the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedom and the right to self-determination (Arts. 1.3, 13 (b), 55 (c), & 62 (2); and the right to self-defense if an armed attack occurs (Art. 51). Despite occasional breaches by France, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Soviet Union, the United Nations Charter principles have endured and helped to usher in a period of impressive economic development, international cooperation, and the proliferation of human rights norms. The Charter norms were embraced in 1989 following the collapse of the USSR. However, since taking office Putin has attempted to recreate the old Soviet empire. Putin sees democracy and respect for the rule of law and human rights norms as his enemies. His invasion of Ukraine is a shock to the collective conscience of the community of civilized nations but not surprising, given his track record. Indeed, Putin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is a blatant breach of one of the most sacred of international community norms, the non-use of force in international relations. For this reason, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an assault on all of humanity, not just the people of Ukraine, and it requires a global response.

Many observers and students are asking whether international law and United Nations Charter norms are still relevant in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Although I share their concerns, I see this as an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to the rule of law in international affairs, as the alternative is violence and brute force. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a setback for the international legal order, but not a complete repudiation of international law or the United Nations Charter.

Here is why I hold the view that I espouse. Both international law and the UN Charter have played a critical role in the conflict in Ukraine. Russia invoked international law to justify its invasion of Ukraine. It recognized the two self-declared republics of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states, which then allowed Russia to say that it was acting collectively in self-defense on the invitation of the governments of the two republics. As dubious as Russia’s claim may be, Putin felt it necessary to make such a claim to give the impression that he was acting consistently with Article 51 of the Charter, which recognizes a state’s right to self-defense. Russia’s claim, of course, is not justified, as the breakaway republics are not recognized by the international community as independent states and thus have no right to self-defense. The Security Council voted 11 to 1 to condemn Russia’s invasion, but the resolution was vetoed by Russia. The General Assembly voted 141 to five (Belarus, Eritrea, North Korea, and Syria) to censure Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, with 35 abstentions. In both instances Russia invoked international law and the UN Charter to justify its invasion.

International law is equally important in determining Russia’s compliance with its obligations under international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions of 1949, and various UN conventions. It is clear Russia has violated international humanitarian law through its indiscriminate bombing of civilians and civilian facilities, by using banned ammunitions such as cluster bombs to target residential areas, and by attacking Ukraine’s nuclear power plants. We can say definitively that Russia has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine and will need to be held accountable. International law allows for the prosecution of individuals, including heads of state, who commit atrocities in war. The precedents established at the Nuremberg Tribunal, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) can be invoked in Ukraine.

International humanitarian law is further necessary to distinguish between legitimate combatants and civilians, legitimate military targets and civilian targets, and the status of Ukrainian civilians who take up arms against Russian troops, foreign fighters in Ukraine, and nationals of third states. International law will also be needed to determine reparations for war damages caused by Russian forces and to provide the framework for any peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine, including boundary delimitation, exchange of prisoners of war, and the status of Russian-occupied breakaway republics and Crimea. It is diplomacy that will ultimately end the war, not missiles.

The critical role of UN agencies in the conflict is also shaped by international law. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has been on the ground providing humanitarian assistance to Ukrainians fleeing the war and taking refuge in neighboring states. UNHCR also has a responsibility to monitor compliance with refugee law. The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is documenting human rights violations committed by Russian troops for future use in any prosecution of Russian officials. UNHRC is also monitoring Russia’s compliance with its human rights obligations during the conflict. The United Nations Children’s Education Fund (UNICEF) is equally engaged in caring for women and children and in making sure children are not exploited during the conflict. Given the disruption to children’s education, UNICEF is key to making sure that some form of educational instructions can be available to children who have been uprooted from their homes and are now in temporary camps in neighboring countries. Moreover, UNICEF has a responsibility to ensure Ukraine and Russia are in compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Additional Protocols, including the prohibition of the recruitment of children in armed conflicts. The World Food Program (WFP) is distributing food to both the internally displaced Ukrainians and those who have fled the conflict and taken refuge in neighboring countries. The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is working to make sure Ukraine’s cultural properties, works of art and antiquities are not looted or destroyed in the war, as has happened in past conflicts. The World Health Organization (WHO) is providing medical assistance to the Government of Ukraine and to humanitarian aid agencies to treat civilians undergoing treatment at hospitals and make sure medical supplies reach those in need. Given Russia’s deliberate attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, and Putin placing Russia’s nuclear deterrence force on a heightened state of alert, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) must verify that Russia is in full compliance with its obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and ensure that there are no accidental leaks of radiation.

The following actions can be taken immediately by the UN to pressure Russia to end the war: suspend Russia’s participation in all UNGA activities; call on member states to assist Ukraine in repelling Russian aggression; and establish a commission of experts to document evidence of war crimes committed by Russian forces. It is imperative that the United Nations must play a significant role in the conflict if it is to remain relevant. The international community simply cannot allow one state to invade its neighbor without holding it accountable. Otherwise, such conduct will lead to an erosion of UN Charter norms and permanently damage the reputation of the organization.

Students of International Relations have a critical role to play in analyzing the legal and political aspects of the war and explaining it to their peers and the public at large. As the next generation of diplomats, policymakers and lawyers, IR students will be called upon to construct a new international legal order that can deter future aggressors. The framers of the postwar order were not IR majors, but they were visionaries. Now that IR students have the tools to analyze international politics, it is incumbent on them to take the lead in restructuring the existing legal order to make it more democratic, inclusive, respectful of its diversity and more just for all of humankind. In that respect, the Russian invasion of Ukraine is an opportunity for IR students.

Written by: Max Hilaire

Source: UNYP

The leading Czech carmaker Skoda Auto has been plagued by production problems in recent years. First because of closures during the Covid pandemic, then due to a lack of components because of the war in Ukraine and most recently because of the strict lockdown in Shanghai, which could lead to a fallout in key electronic components from China, the leading Czech business daily Hospodarské noviny reported.

Hit by fallouts in deliveries, Skoda produced almost 28 percent fewer cars in the first quarter of this year, mainly due to a Covid-related shortage of chips and wiring harnesses produced in Ukraine. Now there are fears that a shortage of electronic parts from Shanghai may further worsen its performance.

“There is great concern about the lockdown in Shanghai, where we have a production centre and the Volkswagen Group has a number of plants there. Shanghai supplies us with a number of electronic components and, there is a mounting risk of delivery delays for several parts,” Jaroslav Povšík, a member of the company’s supervisory board, told the business daily.

Electrical components, air conditioning parts, shock absorbers and brake systems are all imported from China. Although Povšík did not disclose which components are now at stake, he said that the company has already held a crisis meeting on what steps Škoda will take in the event of a crisis. The company has not had to limit production so far, but in case of a prolonged closure, a fallout in key supplies cannot be ruled out.

Read the rest here.

Czech Radio has launched a new fundraising project which aims to provide musical instruments to children of Ukrainian refugees but also to Czech children whose parents don’t have the means to buy them. The project, called If a Thousand Clarinets is spearheaded by the world-famous Czech opera singer Magdalena Kožená.

Kdyby tisíc klarinetů, or If a Thousand Clarinets, is a famous 1964 Czech musical film featuring hit songs by the Semafor theatre, performed by the biggest stars of the day, including singers Waldemar Matuška, Karel Gott or Hana Hegerová.

If a Thousand Clarinets is also the name of a new fundraising project launched by Czech Radio’s Endowment Fund this Tuesday. Its aim is to distribute musical instruments, both used and new, among children whose parents cannot afford them.

The project has received support from a number of leading Czech musicians, including violinist Jiří Svěcený, drummer and singer David Koller and singer-songwriter Jiří Suchý, one of the authors of the famous musical:

“The idea of providing Ukrainian children with musical instruments, which they couldn’t take with them when they fled their country, is a beautiful one and I am really grateful to anyone who will contribute, and also to those who came up with the idea.”

The project is spearheaded by the famous Czech opera singer Magdalena Kožená, who has long been supporting the Czech Republic’s unique system of art schools through her endowment fund.

Read the rest here.

Authors: Ruth Fraňková, Josef Kaňka

Almost everyone has heard of the Great Egyptian Pyramids of Giza, the oldest-known of which was built around 2600 BC; most people in the West have heard of England’s Stonehenge, believed to have been constructed somewhere between 3000 BC to 2000 BC; and some may even have heard of Newgrange in Ireland (Sí an Bhrú in Irish), a grand passage tomb built around 3200 BC. But very few people know about Central Europe’s ‘roundels’ – Neolithic circular enclosures, the construction of which between 4600 – 4900 BC makes them far older than all of the more famous prehistoric sites mentioned above. Radio Prague International spoke to archaeologist Jaroslav Řídký about these ancient structures.

Meet Jaroslav Řídký – interested in history and human evolution from a young age, he tried out various disciplines and areas of study before realising that the one that best allowed him to take advantage of the various branches of science and to work with experts from different fields was the subject of archaeology. Now at the Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague, he focuses on the Neolithic Period and Late Stone Age in Central Europe, Northeast Africa and West Asia, especially Turkey. He is also one of the Czech Republic’s leading experts on so-called ‘roundels’ (known as ‘rondely’ in Czech) – large circular structures from the Neolithic period that have been found all over central Europe, including Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria, and, of course, the Czech Republic.

Read the rest here.

Authors: Anna Fodor, Anna Kubišta

Photo: Ondřej Tomšů, Radio Prague International

The Žďák Bridge, which spans the banks of the Vltava River, was completed in 1967. At the time it was the largest single-arch steel bridge in the world.

The Žďák Bridge spans the banks of the Vltava near Staré Sedlo on the left bank and Kostelec nad Vltavou on the right. It got its name from the settlement flooded during the filling of the Orlická dam reservoir and its construction began in in 1957. It was completed in 1967.

Read the rest here.

Radio Prague International celebrated its 85th birthday on Thursday! We would like to thank all our listeners, readers and folowers for staying with us. As a little present, here is a tour of where we work – the Czech Radio Building on Vinohradská 12– just behind the National Museum.

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The NCCC Traders by Nature connect people to make beautiful things happen. When people connect, the positive will win from the negative without a doubt. Creating positive sustainable impact is powered by people that work together and share ideas, knowledge, experiences and best practices. The more we connect and share, the less likely conflict will be.

MAY CELEBRATION

This year in May, the Netherlands-Czech Chamber of Commerce will exist 30 years. And what better way to celebrate than organising a benefit evening for our fellow Europeans, the Ukrainians, and promote mutual Ukrainian-Czech and European-wide business interests at the same time. We intend to launch the Ukrainian-Czech Chamber of Commerce together with the Ukrainian Embassy in the Czech Republic during the evening.

10 MAY 2022 FROM 6 PM AT IMPACT HUB D10

We are in the process of organising the evening and it will take place at Impact Hub D10 at Drtinova 10 in Prague 5 – Smíchov on Tuesday 10 May 18:00-23:00.

CHARITY AUCTION FOR PEOPLE IN NEED SOS UKRAINE FUND

Leading up to this benefit evening, we will put up various valuable items for auction. Items such as an F1 Red Bull Racing cap, signed by Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, the well-known “Virus” and “Protein” artworks by Jan Kalab, a VR workshop by XR Leaders and many more.

If your bid is the winning one, it will automatically be a donation to the SOS Ukraine Fund of People in Need. During the benefit evening itself, we will have a “Dutch”, or reverse, auction to maximise our help to the Ukrainian people.

Please contact us if you have an item you would like to donate for this purpose at office@nlchamber.cz.

A newly published opinion poll on Czech society’s response to Russia’s war on Ukraine suggests that support for NATO is at its highest level for almost three decades – while only 9 percent of respondents now feel there is no threat of armed conflict in this region. I discussed the study’s findings with one of its authors, Matěj Jungwirth of the STEM agency.

“What we see in the data, which was collected at the end of March and the beginning of April – more than a month into the Russian invasion of Ukraine – is unprecedented levels of support for NATO membership in Czech society.

“Some 78 percent declared support for NATO, one way or another, which was the highest support level we’ve seen since, I think, 1994.

“But even more importantly, when you look at the share of people who are certainly supporting, instead of just somewhat supporting, we see that nearly half of the Czech population, 47 percent, is certainly in support of the Czech Republic’s membership in NATO.

“So we see the fact that this unprecedented situation is really driving home the security guarantees and the perception of security that NATO membership brings to Czech society.”

Four percent of the people you polled had a strong positive view of Russia, and 6 percent believe Moscow’s version of the reasons for the conflict in Ukraine. According to your research, who are these people who believe these things?

See the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby

Czech children’s writer Petr Březina has launched a unique undertaking to help Ukrainian child refugees feel at home in the Czech Republic. He has put together a bilingual book of children’s fairy tales, illustrated by Czech children, which should help the newcomers to make friends and learn Czech in an easy way. The book called “Fairytales for Ukrainian children” should be ready in time for the start of the new school year.

The audio version of the book Fairy Tales for Ukrainian Children, written by Petr Březina, is currently being recorded in the Prague Academy of Performing Arts. The popular Czech children’s author wants Ukrainian schoolchildren entering regular Czech classes in September to get it on the first day of the new school year as motivation for them to learn Czech “the easy way”. The book is bilingual, and the audio version will be available in both Czech and Ukrainian by scanning the QR code at the end of each fairy tale.

Petr Březina, who has written over 40 fairy tales for Czech children, recalls how the idea for this unusual project arose.

“On February 24 I went to visit an elementary school that I work with, and when I heard what the Bolsheviks were doing in Ukraine, I was horrified. I felt the need to help somehow and week later, I woke up at 4 am and the idea had crystalized in my head: seven Czech fairy tales told in Czech and Ukrainian, the main theme of which would be a struggle between good and evil –that is very important, especially in this situation.”

Březina took seven classic Czech fairy tale themes and retold them, getting the text translated into Ukrainian. The aim was to introduce Czech fairy tales to Ukrainian children, and at the same time to help them learn Czech in a fairly effortless way.

See the rest here.

Authors: Daniela Lazarová, Pavel Novák

In the Czech Republic, drinking is almost a national sport, which people train for from a young age. But a new campaign warns parents against the dangers of children drinking even so-called non-alcoholic beers.

The Czech Republic has long topped the charts for the highest beer consumption per capita in the world, and it is not far behind in the running for most alcohol consumed per capita either, ranking third globally, according to WHO data from both 2016 and 2019. Alcohol, especially beer, is an important part of Czech culture, considered indispensable at family gatherings and other social occasions. But according to new campaign ‘Nechmel Děti’, over a million people (about 10% of the population) engage in so-called ‘high-risk drinking’. And it starts young. A study by the Department of Addictology at Charles University’s First Faculty of Medicine and the General Faculty Hospital in Prague found that 38% of parents in Czechia offer alcohol to their children before the age of 15, and 11.1% of children as young as 3-6 years old drink flavoured beer drinks.

An important part of the campaign is about shedding light on the rise of so-called ‘beermixes’ – non-alcoholic or low-alcohol beers, flavoured beers, and beer-based drinks such as radlers and shandys, where beer is mixed with juice, lemonade, or another type of soft drink. According to experts behind the campaign, 25% of parents consider the consumption of non-alcoholic and flavoured beers by children to be without risk and as a result, parents often give their children these drinks from a very young age. But Petr Popov, head of the Department of Addictology that was behind the study, warns that even small amounts of alcohol can be detrimental to the health of children.

“One of the problems is that some beers labelled as “non-alcoholic” do in fact contain alcohol. So there is a possibility of confusion (whether intended by the producer or not). At the same time, even truly non-alcoholic beers function as training for drinking alcoholic beers. The #nechmeldeti campaign helps to draw attention to the risks associated with giving “alcoholic alternatives” to children,” Popov is quoted as saying in an information leaflet available on the campaign website.

For a child, a drink containing 0.5% alcohol is equivalent to an adult having a normal-size beer, he states further. Moreover, it is likely to lead to riskier drinking habits in the future.

“Children get used to the bitter taste of hops. It is a realistic assumption that they will look for it all the more at an older age”, Popov said, according to news site české noviny.

See the rest here.

Author: Anna Fodor

1. Become future-ready
2. Remove organizational silos to make change possible
3. A resilient workforce underpins a resilient business
4. Managing risk and compliance during periods of fast change
5. Succeed with Ekko

Become future-ready

Do you feel like your organization is always playing catch-up? That no matter how hard you try, you’re always one step behind? You may invest in research and development to explore new business models or strategies that help you maintain relevance in your fast-changing environment, only to find that there are too many barriers when it comes to implementing your plans. Perhaps you can never get ahead of your organization’s staff churn rate and are struggling to find employees with the right skills to replace those who are due to retire soon. Or, it may be that keeping up with the pace of regulatory change in your industry feels impossible.

If any of that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Implementing strategic change through to an operational level is notoriously hard. In fact, according to Gartner, only 8% of strategy leaders report a success rate of 90% or more on long-term strategic initiatives. So how can you transform your organization into something more adaptable, flexible, and agile? To gain the ability to make strategic plans happen faster? And operate flawlessly no matter how fast the world changes?

Organizational leaders must build agility and resilience into strategic and operating plans and processes so that pre-empting and reacting to change becomes part of the fabric of the business. A “That’s how we’ve always done it” mentality should be replaced with a growth mentality; one which encourages the curious, open-minded approach needed to promote change and drive innovation. And of course, we need to re-tool our organizations with technology that enables frictionless change and empowers the whole workforce to succeed no matter how fast or often things change.

Here, we’ll delve deep into the details of these important pillars for operational success. Happy reading.

You can download full article in PDF here.

The Great Synagogue in Pilsen, has opened its door to the public after a three-year renovation. The monumental building, which is the second biggest synagogue in Europe and one of the five biggest in the world, opened last Sunday, just a few days before the start of Passover, with a Torah scroll being carried inside under a velvet canopy.

I spoke to Barbora Freund of the Pilsen Jewish community to find out more about the history of the Great Synagogue and I started by asking her what triggered its construction back 1888:

“The Jewish community started to grow exponentially after the reforms introduced by Josef II. Before that, Jews were not allowed to settle in Pilsen, but with these reforms, they were allowed to come back and build their houses here.

“First, they built the Old Synagogue, but it soon wasn’t big enough for the growing community, so a plan was conceived to build this big synagogue that would accommodate the whole Jewish community.

“The second reason was that the Jewish community was quite rich and it was a matter of pride. However, already at the time when it was built, it was, let’s say, over-dimensioned.

“At the time when the synagogue was built, the Pilsen Jewish community had around 1,200 members and before the war, it had around 3,000 members.”

What do we know about the history of the synagogue? I know it was originally designed by a Viennese architect, but his plan wasn’t used. Is it true that it wasn’t approved because it would outshine the local church?

“I would say that this is more of an urban legend. The real reason why the project of Max Fleischer wasn’t carried out was that it was simply too expensive.

“Originally the synagogue was supposed to be neo-Gothic and the towers were meant to be 65 metres high. But in the end, a different and a cheaper plan was chosen.”

And that’s the Moorish-Romanesque design that we can see today…

“Exactly. But I would like to say one more thing concerning the original project. It actually didn’t completely disappear. It was eventually carried out, although in a slightly modified and smaller version, in the town of České Budějovice. Unfortunately, that synagogue was torn down during the Second World War.”

So who was the author of the current design?

“It was Emanuel Klotz, who originally co-worked with Max Fleischer. And why did he choose the Moorish-Romanesque style? That’s because it was in fashion at the time. It was very typical for the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries for synagogues to be built in the Romanesque style.

“There are many examples, such as the Dohány Synagogue in Budapest, which is the largest one in Europe, or the Jerusalem and Spanish synagogues in Prague. So it was simply a fashion at the time.”

How come the Pilsen synagogue wasn’t torn down during WWII?

“Let me answer by turning the question around. Why should it be torn down? Pilsen was not part of the Sudetenland. We were part of the Protectorate Bohemia and Moravia. Synagogues in the Sudetenland were destroyed during Kristallnacht, but we weren’t occupied at the time in Central Bohemia.

Read the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Taking in over 300,000 war refugees in the space of several weeks is an unprecedented challenge for the Czech Republic logistics-wise and in terms of psychological support. A team of experts from the Israel Trauma Coalition, which trains government organizations, NGOs, healthcare workers, teachers and counsellors how to get communities back on their feet following a disaster, visited the Czech Republic this week to share their know-how. I spoke to Gili Nir from ITC about their mission.

“Basically, the ITC is an organization in Israel that helps the population to deal with the whole Israeli situation. We do resilience building, trauma therapy and prepare individuals, families, communities to deal with crisis situations. We try to share our hard-learned lessons of the Israeli situation with the rest of the world. Of course, since the war broke out we have been working very hard on this refugee situation.”

The Czech Republic has taken in over 300,000 refugees from Ukraine, manly women and children. What problems should we be looking out for?

“First of all, I want to tell you that I was amazed and even in awe to how the Czech Republic is accepting this situation as a nation, as a state and even as private people. I have met some absolutely amazing Czech private people who are doing amazing initiatives to help the refugees. I also saw how you as a state, as a city are being organized to accept these people. I have also been to Poland and Germany and other places and every state has its own way how to deal with the situation but here in Prague, in the Czech Republic, I saw something different. I saw people really opening their homes, their hearts and saying “we are with you in this bad situation”. So I really was inspired to see and to feel your reaction to this situation.”

See the rest here.

Author: Daniela Lazarová

Dozens of new books on contemporary Japan have been gifted to the General Library of the Oriental Institute of the CAS. The books were donated by the Nippon Foundation and presented by His Excellency Hideo Suzuki, the Ambassador of Japan to the Czech Republic, on 7 April 2022. The General Library of the Oriental Institute of the CAS is open not only to researchers, but also to the public interested in Asian Studies.

The endowment consists of books written in English or Japanese that represent a variety of topics and genres. “Among them, you will find works on society, economy, language, geography, but also fiction. The Nippon Foundation provided us with a diverse range of publications designed to contribute to our understanding of Japan. They can be an ideal source for students who are interested in Japanese culture and society,” explains Nobuko Toyosawa, head of the Department of East Asia at the Oriental Institute of the CAS, who has been based in Prague since 2017.

Japanese Ambassador Hideo Suzuki examining a map from the collections of the Oriental Institute (left: Nobuko Toyosawa).

Modern Japanese Culture, Japanese Diasporas, or Premodern Japan. These titles and more can be found in the list of new books, including several novels like A Tokyo Romance by British-Dutch writer, Ian Buruma.

The Orient in literature

“We consider book donations very important at the Oriental Institute, because it is thanks to them that we are able to gradually enhance our book collection, thus filling the shelves that emptied somewhat during the 1970s,” says Táňa Dluhošová, director of the Oriental Institute of the CAS. Most of the staff at the time left the institute for political reasons, and it was not possible to conduct research freely or purchase the relevant literature.

The donated books are about Japanese society as well as mythology.

The public library now houses over 270 thousand volumes in its collection and is one of the largest at the Czech Academy of Sciences. “Our library collections are basically divided into two sections. One is intended for specialists and researchers and contains sources that focus on issues in depth. The other section is suitable for a more general public interested in topics regarding Asia,” notes Reysa Alenzuela, head of the General Library of the Oriental Institute of the CAS.

The library is open to the public for a minimal fee, and information regarding opening hours and loan services can be found on its website.

Prepared by: Leona Matušková, Division of External Relations, CAO of the CAS
Photo: Jana Plavec, Division of External Relations, CAO of the CAS

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES)[1] from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, the Balkans and around the world. Leyla Mammadova is a researcher specialized in international humanitarian law, demography and the EU Institutions. In her text entitled “Europe: Of Status Qua and (Climate) Change”she is writing about the climate change……

Europe: Of Status Qua and (Climate) Change

Climate change is all over the place across Europe and far beyond. Heatwaves have become more common in most parts of the world as a result of climate change, as have extreme rainfall occurrences, which in turn lead to flooding. Even if greenhouse gas emissions are dramatically decreased, global warming and associated changes in temperature, precipitation patterns, and sea levels are expected to persist throughout the twenty-first century. Currently, high temperatures, flooding, water shortages, and wildfires are all becoming more common in European cities than ever before. The actual hazards are determined by the city’s or town’s geography and unique features. When compared to other regions, closed areas and densities of humans and assets in urbanized areas enhance hazards from climate and weather events. The situation in Europe particularly tends to become more severe year by year: land and sea temperatures are rocketing high; rainfall trends are dramatically changing; sea levels are increasing; and the heat waves becoming a major challenge (Climate Adapt, 2021).

Put differently, nearly all regions of Europe reached the frontline with the climate change phenomenon. With Europe being heavily urbanized continent and the 75% of the European population residing in cities, the detrimental impact of the climate change seems to be inevitable and indeed will come at a high expense. Urban sprawl leads to excessive energy, land, water, and air consumption, which makes the destiny of European cities the very bone of contention. As a result of the high concentration of people, economic activity, investments, and vital infrastructure in cities, they are more vulnerable to climate change than rural areas. Furthermore, the substitution of artificial surfaces and buildings for natural vegetation modifies temperature, humidity, wind speed, and precipitation patterns. By trapping heat and causing the so-called “urban heat-island effect,” impermeable surfaces restrict extreme amounts of rainfall from draining through into earth, start increasing in cities different from the surrounding area. In the past few years, scientists have given growing dire warnings about the prospect of elevated global warming (possibly a 48°C rise in global average surface temperatures beyond pre-industrial norms by the 2060s or 2070s), which would test societies’ adaptive capabilities to the breaking point (Carter, 2011).

Instances of urban climate change adaptation techniques are beginning to appear in related to policy solutions. These are frequently incorporated into larger climate change and green innovation that include, and in some cases, are primarily focused on, climate change mitigation. It is important to note that the cities or the ‘urban-level politicians’, should be regarded on the same level along with other political actors that are to contribute to the climate change mitigation. Precisely, nearly 70% of total energy consumption stem from the cities, and since there is a rapid process of urbanization going on in the world, the number is expected to grow over time. The way urban areas are planned and developed as well as they respond to the ongoing climate crisis play a crucial role in Co2 emissions and the energy use, which in turn, affect the climate change phenomenon at large. (University of Bergen, 2020) According to the member of IFIMES Advisory Board, J Scott Younger (2022), the architects and urban planners are now expected to put extra efforts in adapting to climate change mitigation and renewable energy usage since the coming 30+ years ahead are to witness even higher level of urbanization.

Climate change policies that are ‘integrated’ entail those developed for cities such as Madrid, Copenhagen, and Rotterdam. Moreover, planning and zoning restrictions in Stuttgart, Germany, for instance, aim to protect open space and promote the presence of plants in intensively built-up regions. This is to improve air flow and hence reduce overheating and pollution issues. A Building and Construction Law of 2002 in Basel, Switzerland, mandates that all new and refurbished flat roofs be greened. As a result, Basel has surpassed London as the world’s leading green roof metropolis in terms of green roof area per capita. The Biotope Area Factor law in Berlin, Germany, mandates that a certain percentage of major innovations be kept as green or accessible land (Carter, 2011).

It’s becoming clear that European cities are playing an increasingly important role in climate and energy governance. Cities themselves are well aware of this new governance role. Inter-city networks are being mobilized by city governments to explore remedies to energy and climate concerns (e.g. C40, Energy Cities). The European Union’s multi-level governance has created new administration areas for cities throughout Europe. Inter-city networks appear to be crucial in terms of the ideas that planners and policymakers are pursuing on a domestic level. The actions initiated by the EU and its Member States show the extent to which the situation is pressing, and the need to expand the efforts beyond EU’s capabilities (Carbon Brief, 2020).

All in all, to tackle the issue and to address it in a reasonable way, the collective action must be taken by all means possible. The 21st century and the late COVID-19 crisis have shown that it is no helpful to rely solely on political actors or single stakeholders, but rather to take the situation in own hands and take the necessary measures as soon as possible. In other words, it appears that the European community must not only rely on the government’s ability to implement its coercive power in the climate-related policymaking, but rather start working on the footprint in line with the Paris Agreement and call for the collective ‘green’ action. To help cities maintain an urban life in a ‘greener; and more sustainable way, the united efforts of both the people and the government should be put into force. We no longer have time to waste; it is time to press the alarm button and take the action.

About the author:

Leyla Mammadova of the University Leuven, Belgium (Leuven International and European Studies (LINES) is a researcher specialized in international humanitarian law, demography and the EU Institutions.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect IFIMES official position.

Bibliography:

1. Carbon Brief (2020). Retrieved from: https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-are-european-cities-delivering-on-their-climate-commitments
2. Carter, J. G. (2011). Climate change adaptation in European cities. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, (May). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2010.12.015
3. Climate Adapt (2021). Retrieved from: https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/knowledge/tools/urban-ast/step-0-2
4. EURACTIV (2021). Retrieved from: https://www.euractiv.com/section/climate-environment/news/european-cities-must-adapt-to-climate-change-eu-climate-chief-says/
5. IFIMES (2022). Retrieved from: https://www.ifimes.org/en/researches/ifimes-ii-population-and-pollution-and-urbanisation/4991?page=2
6. Kumar, P. (2021). Climate Change and Cities: Challenges Ahead. Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, 3(February), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2021.645613
7. Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research (2019) Retrieved from: https://kinder.rice.edu/urbanedge/2019/09/03/how-climate-change-going-change-cities-urban-spaces
8. University of Bergen (2020). Retrieved from: https://www.uib.no/en/cet/126450/european-cities-actors-climate-and-energy-transformation

Ljubljana/Leuven, 9 April 2022

[1] IFIMES – International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies, based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has Special Consultative status at ECOSOC/UN, New York, since 2018.