AuthorMartin Hladík

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.

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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.

Hurvínek, one of the Czech Republic’s most popular puppet characters, is heading into space. He will be carried to the outer edge of the stratosphere on board of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Hurvínek is the second children’s character to fly into space after the Little Mole’s Space Shuttle Mission in 2011.

The character of Hurvínek was created nearly a century ago by artist Josef Skupa as part of a father and son puppet comedy duo. Hurvínek, along with his father Spejbl, have since become one of the most popular children’s characters, starring in countless performances on the theatre stage as well as on radio and television.

Now, Hurvínek is set for another adventure. In June, he will travel into the stratosphere on board the Planetum 1 satellite, which will be carried into space by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket in June.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

Read the rest here.

With its rugged terrain, cave complexes and iconic Karlštejn castle, the protected landscape area of the Bohemian Karst is one of the most visited sites in Czechia.

The Protected Landscape Area of the Bohemian Karst spans 130 square kilometres and is located between Prague and Beroun in the Central Bohemian Region. One third of the state protected nature reserved is made up of woodland, criss-crossed by public tracks. These not only follow the nearby Berounka River, but also lead to such landmarks as Karlštejn, the Koněprusy Caves, the Bubovice rainfalls orth e nearby Great America Quarry, which is reminiscent of the much larger Grand Canyon in the United States.

There are well over 700 caves in the Bohemian Karst, nine of which are more than 300 meters long. The most famous of these is the Koněprusy cave complex, whose spaces extend for over 2 kilometers.

Fossil hunters are also likely to enjoy the Bohemian Karst. The area has served as an important site for palaeontologists since the 19th century.

The area of the protected landscape is home to valuable thermophilic flora and fauna, such as the common buzzard and more than 20 species of meadow and forest orchids.

There are also valuable thermophilic flora and fauna in the area, such as one of the last populations of the common buzzard in the Czech Republic, and almost 20 species of meadow and forest orchids grow here.

Read the rest here.

A new exhibition focusing on Slovene architect Jože Plečnik has opened at Prague Castle, the Czech capital’s iconic landmark that Plečnik himself had a big role in reconstructing. The exhibit, located both within the Old Palace building and the wider Castle complex, marks the 150th anniversary of Plečnik’s birth.

No other architect left as big a mark on Prague Castle in recent history as Jože Plečnik. Although he moved to Prague already in 1911, his most famous designs would be constructed in the Czech capital after the end of World War I and the birth of the independent Czechoslovak Republic.

During the 1920s and 1930s, Plečnik was in charge of reconstructing Prague Castle, which had become the seat of the Czechoslovak head of state since the proclamation of the republic in 1918. Several of the Castle’s courtyards, as well as the private study of first Czechoslovak President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, were designed by the Slovene architect, who also partially redesigned the building’s famous Spanish Hall.

The chief curator of the exhibition, architecture historian Vladimír Šlapeta, told Czech Radio that the anniversary of Plečnik’s birth served as a call to organise an exhibition that would remind people of the Slovene architect’s work and legacy.

“We worked together with our colleagues from Slovenia on this exhibition and the opportunity arose to hold it in Prague Castle’s Old Palace building, which is a beautiful structure. At the same time, visitors will be able to see Plečnik’s work ‘in the flesh’ so to say, with accompanying explanatory panels.

Read more here.

Authors: Tom McEnchroe, Alena Rokosová

Following Viktor Orbán’s landslide victory in the Hungarian parliamentary elections this Sunday, some politicians and experts have questioned future cooperation within the Visegrad group, comprising the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. I discussed the question with political scientist Pavlína Janebová from the Association for International Affairs.

“I think the Visegrad Four Group has been experiencing some of the most historical moments in its existence in the past weeks given the Hungarian position towards the conflict in Ukraine and the elections didn’t really change much about that.

“Russia has always been a topic that wasn’t agreed upon in the Visegrad Four. It was always very clear that the position of Poland, on the one hand, and Hungary on the other were quite different.

“Poland has always been very critical towards Russia whereas Hungary has been building relatively strong relations with Putin’s Russia, but the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has escalated this disagreement and I would say it is a critical moment in the cooperation of the V4 on the highest political level.”

See the rest here.

Author: Ruth Fraňková

The owner of Czech internet giant Seznam.cz, Ivo Lukačovič, says he will send CZK 100 million of his own money to help Ukraine. Mr. Lukačovič wrote on Twitter on Monday that he could not get footage following a Russian massacre in the Ukrainian town of Bucha out of his mind.

The billionaire businessman said he had therefore decided to send funds to help the Ukrainian government acquire arms to defend itself from Russia.

Images of murdered civilians in Bucha have led to an international wave of condemnation of Russia.

Author: Ian Willoughby

The Czech Association of Breweries and Malt Houses (ČSPS) is aiming to get Czech beer culture added to UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list. The authors of the application are optimistic about their chances, but warn that it will take at least four years before the effort is successful.

While the Czech Republic tends to dominate the annual global rankings of beer consumption per capita, its beer drinking culture is not yet recognised by UNESCO.

This could change in the coming years after the Czech Association of Breweries and Malt Houses announced last week that it has sent an application to recognise beer culture as an official tradition in the Plzeň Region. Another will soon be sent to the regional authorities of South Bohemia as well.

The association’s executive director, Martina Ferencová, says that these applications are the necessary initial step in the process of getting the country’s beer culture recognised globally.

Read the rest here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Czech animated films have enjoyed international popularity and acclaim that far outstrips what you might expect from a small country of 10 million people. A current Prague exhibition aims to show the public that Czech animation is still alive and well and to popularize it, especially among the younger generation.

Czech animation has a long history going back to the 1920s, but its so-called “Golden Age” was between 1945 and 1989, bringing the world beloved TV series such as Bob a Bobek, Pat and Mat, Little Mole, and Maxipes Fik, and films such as Trnka’s The Hand, Barta’s The Pied Piper, and Zeman’s Invention for Destruction, which combines live action with various forms of animation.

At first glance it may seem surprising that the Golden Age of Czech animation almost precisely coincides with the country’s Communist Era, but this can be explained by the fact that during this time, animated films, like all productions, were funded by the state, which meant financing wasn’t a problem and they could be produced in large numbers. On the flip side, of course, films were also censored and certain projects couldn’t be realised at all.

However, světy české animace (Worlds of Czech Animation), an exhibition taking place in Prague’s Holešovice district, wants to show that animation is not just something from the past.

“The aim of our exhibition is to give visitors some insight into Czech animation, but not just as something which is already finished and preserved, i.e. artifacts, pictures, puppets and decorations. We want to show it as something alive, and present the process of animation, the people and professions that take part in it, we want to show them the present and the future as well as the past”, says curator of the exhibition, Jan Bubeníček.

See the rest here.

Authors: Anna Fodor,Václav Müller,Klára Škodová

Many expats living in the Czech Republic are considering buying a property in the country, but for a non-native speaker and foreign national this may sometimes feel like a challenge. To find out more about the most common challenges expats face in this regard we spoke to Robin Petrásek, a mortgage advisor who administers the “Czech Expats property owners group”, a Facebook group of nearly 6,000 people looking to buy or manage their property in Czechia. I began by asking him how the group came to be.

“We got involved about three years ago, when we took it over from the original founders. The administrators of it are myself and my colleague Nick Marley.

“What we are basically trying to do is put together a community of expats and make sure that only valuable members are inside it.

“That means that we check who wants to become a member and we moderate each post inside the group to make sure that all of the discussions are relevant to the topic.”

So I am guessing that you don’t know how the group actually came about?

“Actually I do know.”

Well then, tell me the story.

“The story is that one expat, about five or seven years ago, was struggling to find some things.

“This is often still the case, because while it may be easy to google things in your home country, if you are an expat in the Czech Republic it may be often be quite hard to find information that would be easily searchable for a native national of the country. Of course you ask your parents, or your friends, but it can still be hard.

See the rest here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

Showing someone how much you know and care about them is best through a birthday present. If your special person is a nature lover and you’re not, it can be challenging to find the best gift for them. Fortunately, we have a few suggestions that will be inspirational and help you find what you’ve been looking for. Besides, you can always pick some of our ideas and save yourself the trouble of looking for the right present yourself.

Camping equipment

When you say nature, we say camping. One of the favourite activities for nature lovers is camping, which gives you a full spectrum of possibilities when shopping for the perfect gift. Do they have a quality, sturdy tent? Maybe they need a new sleeping bag because the old one’s zipper broke or it tore in several places. A two-person camping hammock can be a good idea too, especially for car campers. Look into a daypack that your nature lover can fit all the necessities in and carry everywhere.

Picnic basket with essentials

Spending time in nature is best when you have a yummy meal to enjoy as well. You guessed it right, it’s time to get something picnic-related for your nature lover. How about a picnic basket featuring all the necessities such as utensils, a tablecloth, napkins, and cups? Throw in a wooden picnic table in the mix for those days when the nature lover prefers to stay home but still enjoy the outdoors in their Sydney backyard.

Plants galore

When shopping for nature lovers, you can’t miss out on plants and flowers, right? Bringing nature indoors is always on their mind, so enrich their Sydney home with some of the best plant gifts. Look for a creative plant gift in Sydney and offer your friend an entire set of nature-like presents that will make their birthday the best one yet. From succulent gift lants to palms, cyclamen, cactus to aglaonema – you’ll find a vast choice of gift plants in Sydney.

Survival kit

Spending time outdoors in the woods or the mountains requires proper safety and protection measures. One of them includes having a survival kit at hand. So, the next time you can’t make up your mind about the ultimate gift for a nature lover, think of a survival kit that features all the essentials. From a first aid blanket to a wire saw, flashlight and compass – a survival kit will come in handy in case of a natural disaster or another usual hiking trip. Considering the entire kit is packed in a perfectly compact bag, they won’t have to worry about forgetting some of the essential items.

Water sterilizer

How many times have you come across undrinkable water on your hiking journey? If you haven’t, your nature lover of a friend must have multiple times. But do they have a water sterilizer yet? Whether they do or don’t another one can always come in handy. With a water sterilizer that can purify any water and make it drinkable by killing 99.9% of bacteria and viruses, your friend will never have to worry about staying thirsty during their outdoor adventure.

Final thoughts

Nature is full of surprises, which is why all of you spending a lot of time in the mountains, woods or hiking needs to be aware of all the potential hams they could face. You as a friend should keep that in mind too because you can contribute a lot to their safety by offering them the most useful birthday gifts. From tents to sleeping bags, picnic essentials and survival kits, nature lovers will need all of those items to make their stay in nature feel like they’re home. Whichever item you choose, they will be thrilled without a doubt.

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.

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 – 4” he is continuing with the analysis of the war in Ukraine.

Putin’s War – 4

Putin’s war is one month old and entered the second. Talks are taking place but there are no substantive agreements. Putin does not mind as long as he can keep weakening the Ukrainian resolve, which is more and more unlikely as the days pass. He has to prove to the Russian people that the invasion was worthwhile and he has extended and secured the borders against any western aggression, a figment of his imagination. This is despite the fact that he started the current war and destruction and there was no sign of threat from the west.

In the few sightings of Vladimir Putin, he is usually sitting in glorious isolation or, if he is walking, his left arm is hanging down, limp. This can be the sign of a stroke, albeit a mild one. Whenever he meets with any staff they are placed at distance; he is reputedly frightened of catching covid on top of his other ailments, which may include the early signs of dementia. Normally, I would be sorry for someone with his declining health, but I cannot be for someone who causes others so much stress and heartache, not to mention death. It is taking too long for him to earn the change of name from Putin to Putout or even Takeaway!!

Like Hitler and Stalin before him, his close associates and underlings are afraid to tell him the truth and tell him only what he wants to know. The tremendous damage that he has caused to Kherson and Mariupol, for example, have earned him the branding of a ‘war criminal’. To be properly charged is a complicated and very lengthy process. It takes years to get someone to the courts in the Hague and it is likely that he will die before that. But is one reason that he does not want to meet the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is that he is ill, apart from the fact that he thinks he may have more bargaining chips the longer the struggle goes on.

There are signs that some of Ukraine ‘s near neighbours to the west, notably Poland, Slovakia, and the Czechs, some of the countries that felt the worst of the Soviet era, are uncomfortable with the fact that the EU is not apparently doing enough. The German government have been put in a difficult position having had to back off from taking gas directly through the Nord Stream pipeline. Furthermore, when Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the German Bundestag, as he did the US Senate, UK House of Commons and the French and Italian parliaments, his speech was greeted very with only polite applause. When it comes to NATO their support over the years has been much less than their due; it is time to change that and to acknowledge that the world has moved on since WWII, and their input is important. In fact, looking ahead, the US is going to be increasingly involved in the East. China has now armed the three islands which they built up from the sea-bed, contrary to what they said earlier. The islands are strategically placed to ‘guard’ the South China Sea and China’s actions must worry the ASEAN countries which are dependent on using it. One reason, perhaps for the Australian, UK and US governments signing an agreement, AUKUS, is to show intent for the trans-Pacific region.

The War in its Second Month

To return to the current invasion, it has now entered its second month, as said. The Russians have lost more soldiers than they planned, 7,000 – 10,000 + dead. They cannot obviously admit to that and their estimate is even lower. They were going to bring in other troops; from Belorussia was mentioned. How will the troops from there enter the struggle? In the last election, Alexander Lukashenko declared the election a fraud and stayed in office, despite his losing by a significant margin. There remains a sizeable opposition, passive at the moment, and one can perceive a fair amount of sympathy for their neighbour, Ukraine. In addition, despite Stalin having come from Georgia, many Georgians have a strong dislike for the Russians. In 2008, the Russian army invaded Georgia, ostensibly to come to the ‘aid’ of the pro-Russian population in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. There was a suggestion that the South Ossetians were provoked to start a fight with the Georgian government which led to the Russian involvement. The Russian troops had been assembling on the South Ossetian border and found ways to justify the narrative to enter as peace-keepers and the initial internal fight became a full-scale war with the Russians using their air force to telling effect. Finally, peace was settled with a ceasefire agreement signed in front of Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France, with the breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia no longer being part of Georgia, which is the situation as of today. It would appear that Putin, having tried this approach before, was using almost the same format as before with the pro-Russian region of Ukraine, the Donbas, albeit his ambitions were greater at the start. Putin has been dismayed at the Ukrainian resistance and will have to claw back his demands significantly from what territory he expected to get. We must not forget that he had stolen Crimea in 2014, and the West did nothing about it at that time.

Some Georgian mercenaries, showing their feelings, have entered the war to assist the Ukrainians. However, they are not the only country to have supplied mercenaries; there is a significant number from around the world lending their expertise to the Ukrainians, possibly at least over 15,000. They were much needed.

The Russians, despite NATO saying ‘no’ to the imposition of a no-fly zone over Ukraine, as requested, leaving the Russians the freedom of the skies, which they have used to telling effect, the Ukrainian forces have put up a stout resistance and even more on the ground. They are holding their ground and pushing back in some places. Putin has to decide when he has ‘won’ enough and can sell this ‘victory’ to the Russian people before he has destroyed the Russian economy and awakened NATO to realise that they are a force to be reckoned with when they pull together. They will probably, as they did in Georgia, agree to settle on the pro-Russian Donbas region, the Crimea and some of the connecting coastline. Will the Ukrainians agree in the name of peace? They must be allowed to join the EU, however, if not NATO.

The next short period is going to be difficult for the Ukraine people. And then we shall have to rebuild the nation, not just the infrastructure but the people who have had to endure purgatory.

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, 30 March 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.

For the first time ever, the Czech government has a special representative for media and disinformation. His name is Michal Klíma and he has been in charge of several of the country’s leading media outlets in the past. More recently, he has also monitored the Czech media environment for the International Press Institute. I asked him why the government has decided to set up this position and what exactly will be his task.

“When it comes to the media industry, there has been no responsible office on the level of the government.

“That meant, for instance, that while nearly all companies received some sort of support from the state during the coronavirus pandemic, the media did not, because there was no ministry or office responsible for them.

“This is of course just one example, but there are also many other problems. We have no media support infrastructure like there is in other countries.

“Therefore, the idea now is to have a person who is responsible for this and that person is myself.

Read more here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

April is in the name of dance. The National Theater will premiere a dance performance BPM, which was created in cooperation with Israeli and Czech choreographers and dancers. And one performance is not enough, so go to Trutnov to see another masterpiece.

Dance through the rain with Israeli culture!

Young and talented in the National Theatre

april 2022 / 19:00 / Národní divadlo / Praha

narodni-divadlo.cz, Eyal Dadon, Gai Behar, Yemi AD

Bpm refers to beats per minute, a measurement of tempo in music, as well as heart rate. The new Czech National Ballet triple bill will set your heart racing. You can expect a truly thrilling evening, consisting of works by Israel’s Eyal Dadon, Sharon Eyal, and Gai Behar, and the Czech creative producer, choreographer, and street fusion visionary Yemi A.D.

The premieres will be on 31.3. and 1.4.2022 in the historical building of the National Theatre. There will be other 3 performances in April and 3 more in June.

Check out a making-of video here.
All the details about the show including the tickets sale are here.

Contemporary Israeli dance in UFFO

24.4.2022 / 19:00 / UFFO / Trutnov

UFFO

The renowned Israeli choreographer brings two breathtaking productions to the Trutnov Community Center stage.

Sharon Vazanna is an independent choreographer and dancer. She will present two artworks in Trutnov´s UFFO. Good Children presents three different individuals, who go into battle. They are determined to deconstruct and reconstruct ancient images engraved in their bodies and souls since childhood.

High presents different situations of courting, seduction, and the search for attention and love. It examines feelings of excitement and momentary freedom in the nightlife.

Learn more about Good children here and about High here.
Tickets are for sale here.

A concert in an unconventional spirit and venue

21.4.2022 / 19:30 / Chodovská tvrz / Praha

bandcamp.com

As part of a jazz series Jazz Meets World, we will listen to a duo Kerendun and Nitai Hershkovits. This connection between world-renowned New York based pianist Nitai Hershkovits and Tel Aviv based writer and vocalist KerenDun (Keren Dunietz) created an EP that dwells in the strange and enchanting, presenting the piano and the voice in their most naked form.

Tickets here.

Jazzman, who loves us and we love him. Itamar

24.4.2022 / 21:00 / Jazz Dock / Praha

Itamar Borochov

The Czech jazz scene knows the award-winning trumpet player Itamar Borochov, who regularly returns to his Czech audience. Raised in the cosmopolitan port city of Jaffa, now a significant presence on the international jazz scene, Borochov is creating a new musical hybrid – bringing the sacred sounds of his upbringing to a jazz quartet setting.

Tickets are sold here.

Drama comedy on Febiofest

28.4.-4.5.2022 / Praha

imdb.com

The International film festival Febiofest will present in a Czech premiere a dark comedy-drama “Concerned Citizen,” which had its world premiere in the Panorama section of the Berlinale

The film, a satirical parable on the insidious ways in which privilege can unleash the prejudice within, centers on Ben, who thinks of himself as a liberal and enlightened gay man, living in the perfect apartment with his boyfriend Raz. All that’s missing to complete the picture is a baby, which the couple is trying to make a reality.

More information soon at the web of Febiofest here.

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 – 3” he is continuing with the analysis of the war in Ukraine.

Putin’s War – 3

Putin’s war is in its 4th week and no end in sight, although the protagonists have agreed to talk again. Meanwhile, the people flee the country to safety, the count being over 3.0 million to date, with Poland generously opening their country to more than half the number. Sanctions are getting heavier, the oligarchs are being pursued more rigorously for their ill-gotten gains, but it is said that Vladimir Putin himself is worth $200 billion, with a significant amount of this probably in a more stable currency than the rouble. Whatever, he personally is cushioned from the pain he inflicts on his own people as well as the Ukrainians, whose country he is devastating because they won’t behave as he tells them. The Russian people hear largely what he wants them to hear through State-controlled outlets, because he has shut down all the free media outlets, except what the more tech-savvy, generally younger people can obtain through their mobiles. Shades of ‘1984’. It is not so long since the nearby East European countries can easily forget the stultifying hand of the Soviet era from which even some Russian people are trying to flee.

Diplomatic channels remain open – just – but there is no change at the moment in the Russian stance. There is concern that the Kremlin will continue parroting their fake Putin view of things, to tell their own people, while starting to step up the war in unpleasant ways as they have done before – chemical weapons. Putin is not worried about the Court of Human Rights; it’s the West’s construction! Meanwhile, the unabated bombing continues with this spreading to other cities, almost to the Ukrainian border with Poland. Putin won’t let up until least of his objectives are met no matter the suffering he causes and despite the Ukrainians resisting valiantly. For the sake of argument let’s say he continues before the sanctions cause him to stop or he is deposed, which will take some time, however. There is the possibility before that of foreign troops, mercenaries, brought in on the Russian side, for example from Belarus, from Syria, where chemical weapons were used previously, and from Africa. The more ruthless the better! Perhaps the war is not going according to plan. One can already predict the Putin line of fake news for the justification of these troops. In this case, it is time the west organize a foreign legion, not beholden to any country flag, to be attached to the Ukrainian armed forces; not attached to NATO. Is this happening?

One can conjecture would Putin have considered Russia being part of the EU as in long days past it considered itself as part of Europe, prior to the days of Lenin? Probably a fanciful idea but there would be no need for NATO should Russia have shown any positive attitude and the current war would not have taken place. Possibly Russia with a forward-thinking leader rather than one looking back.

Putin and the Soviet reminiscences

The west thinks that Putin cannot win, but let us think the unthinkable and that he does partly if not fully. Ukraine would be a devastated country, in the grip of an authoritarian government, costing trillions of dollars to put right. Where is that money going to come from? Sanctioned assets? Will Putin control the rehabilitation and reconstruction? Will NATO continue its passive stance to emphasise again that it is not an organisation to be feared? And so on. The longer that we do nothing and let the invasion continue, the greater the cost, not just in terms of money but in terms of reputation and human suffering. The west is quite rightly concerned when Putin dangles the threats of his using bio-chemical weapons or, God forbid, nuclear. But it’s like a game of chess, for which he is credited with having some ability; we have to find a way to box the ‘king’ in and he goes, either by being deposed or by using more drastic measures, before he releases his thunderbolt! We should not leave the Ukrainian people to carry the fight on their own. They may be ‘cousins’ of the Russian people but they have tasted the democratic freedoms that the west espouses, they see that as the way to prosper, and they are all too aware of the heavy hand of communism, which the Russian people have to endure.

NATO is an end of WWII construct to counter the threat of Stalin and the large swathes of Europe he took under his control. Rightly, the US led the way out of the mess created by the war, and they did an excellent job. Over the subsequent decades, the numbers finding ways to get out of the Soviet bloc to western Europe were significant, particularly through Berlin and the brain- drain that was taking place.

The people saw the dead hand of communism in everyday life. The Berlin wall put a brake on the East Germans; there was unrest also in other countries, such as Hungary and Czechoslovakia. However, NATO remained a deterrent to any thoughts of communist Soviet expansion and when the USSR gave up in 1989 and acknowledged that they found the empire of the satellite countries of Eastern Europe was no longer economically viable to control, these countries breathed a sigh of relief, albeit they did in different ways. These countries gradually became part of the EU, after they met the economic, political and administrative guidelines that were required, so that the EU became a sizeable bloc. Not surprisingly, Russia still being a perceived threat NATO expanded its brief, taking in the new countries of the EU bloc.

In the 1990s, when glasnost was in the air, one wonders if the leaders of Russia would have been willing to consider a partial relaxation of their view of government and would have been willing to consider a trade agreement with the EU, along the lines of EFTA. Was the EU ready to consider such? Probably not, and then we saw the rise of Putin, his gradually increasing obsessive paranoia with the west, giving rise to the situation which we have today.

NATO is largely controlled by the US military, naturally as they have the size under one government. The military that the US brings to the body outweighs what other EU nations + UK can muster. But there is the difficulty that the US President has a say in the use of US troops and therefore NATO’s issues are always partially dependent on the colour of the domestic political scene and how the president views his strength. With Joseph Biden, his domestic political position is sometimes fragile, depending on the issue and Congress, compounded by his naturally averse nature towards controversial problems. Had we had Donald Trump still as US president, he would be trying to withdraw the US from NATO! In the longer run the EU should look to increasingly stand on its own feet and be less reliant on the US, whose main occupation will be the rise of China and its expansionist aims, not just with its real threat to Taiwan, which could possibly come earlier than the target date of 2025.

And there is the possible effect this war is having on climate change and the distribution of fossil fuels. A growing worry.

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, 22 March 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.

Many in the Czech Republic have been welcoming Ukrainian refugees into their homes. One of the most high-profile Prague residents to do so is the ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Martina Mlinarević, whose family have taken in two Ukrainian families, swelling their usual household of three to no fewer than nine. She explains their motivations.

“We from Bosnia experienced exactly the same thing in the ‘90s.

“We all know the horrors of war. We know what it is like to be a refugee.

“And I’m happy to see the Czech Republic’s reaction to everything that is happening in Ukraine, because they were the same in the ‘90s, during the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

“We had so many refugees from my country at that time who found a home in the Czech Republic in those years, thanks to President Havel and the wonderful Czech people.

“So in fact from that position, of people who already survived one war and the pain and horrors of the war, it was quite easy for us to decide that we will help Ukrainians.

Martina Mlinarević’s husband Goran with Ukrainian refugee baby in their home | Photo: archive of Martina Mlinarević

“I think it’s the best decision we ever made, because our home now is filled with new friendship, love and laughter – along with all those horrible things.

“I think that we have managed to give them a safe shelter.”

How are the adults who are staying with you dealing with the situation?

“They are quiet, they are confused, they are following the news all the time.

“They are thinking of their families who remain in Ukraine.

“I think that they believe, just like us in the ‘90s, that it will be over in a few days, or at least in a month.

“I also must say that I am so fascinated by their perseverance and courage.

Read the rest here.

Author: Ian Willoughby
Photo: archive of Martina Mlinarević

The Dresden Barracks, one of the largest buildings in the former Terezín ghetto, are currently in a desolate state. Experts say that the complex needs to be repaired quickly if it is to survive. However, the necessary funds may be harder to secure than was initially thought.

“They once served as the living quarters of women housed in the Jewish ghetto during World War II. Football matches of the local league were played here,” says Šimon Krbec, the director of the Theresienstadt Centre for Genocide Studies as he walks through the remains of the Terezín Barracks building. Large holes can be seen in the roof and all but a few windows have been broken.

“According to experts there still is a chance to save the building, but it has to be renovated soon. Unfortunately, everything is dragging on and nothing specific is being done.”

The building complex dates back to the 18th century, when it was established as a military barracks during the rule of Austrian Empress Maria Theresa. After the end of the Second World War, it remained in use for this purpose, housing Czechoslovak soldiers during the Cold War.

The town has been calling for a reconstruction of the old barracks since 2015, says Róbert Czetmayer, the head of Terezín’s Department of Development, Construction and Property Management.

See the rest here.

Authors: Tom McEnchroe, Lucie Korcová

Many regional and municipal administrations in the Czech Republic who saved at least part of their funds in Russia’s Sberbank have lost access to their money since the bank lost its license after the invasion of Ukraine. Amid fears that this could lead to financial problems for some districts, the Association of Towns and Municipalities is set to discuss the issue with the Ministry of Finance.

Dozens of Czech municipalities and towns, as well as four of the country’s regional administrations, had saved parts of their public funds in Russia’s Sberbank over the past several years. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent cutting off of the bank from the Western financial system has led to this money becoming no longer accessible.

For the authorities of the Vysočina region this means a loss of CZK 2 billion, at least until a settlement can be reached regarding the remaining assets of Sberbank in the Czech Republic, which are in the process of liquidation. Meanwhile, for the South Moravian town of Uherský Brod this means being cut off from CZK 21 million worth of public funds. News site Seznam Zprávy, over CZK 2.5 billion of regional public funds could be frozen in Sberbank in total.

This underestimation of political risk has led many of the concerned administrations to look for emergency solutions. One of them is the mayor of the Silesian town of Fulnek, Petr Ertel.

Read the rest here.

Author: Tom McEnchroe

There’s no doubt that your employees are your biggest asset, as they bring specialised skills and unique value that allows your company to achieve success. However, simply having knowledgeable and experienced workers won’t be enough. You will also need to understand your workforce and make efforts to manage it more efficiently if you want to reach higher productivity and efficiency levels, increase your revenue, and reach new growth opportunities. To that end, here are some of the best and most important workforce management tips you should follow:

Hire the right employees

Hiring only the best employees is key to success, especially when running a smaller business. Engaged and productive workers are more efficient and profitable as well, not to mention that the most suitable people are also much easier to manage. The goal is to focus on candidates who have the right knowledge, skillsets, and experience, as well as those you assume would be the right fit with your company culture.

Provide proper training

Along with hiring the right people, retaining them might be equally important for business success. That is why you need to offer great training to your employees, not only after hiring them, but also throughout their career within your company. It’s a well-known fact that companies that provide growth and development opportunities tend to have higher employee retention and satisfaction rates as a result.

Offer the necessary tools

While proper training, experience, and cultural fits are all great benefits, every workplace requires specific tools in order to improve operations, reduce workloads, and make the job easier to some extent. To ensure your employees are able to reach their full potential, you need to provide them with the necessary tools as well, whether it’s machines, equipment, software, protective gear, or any other needed resource.

Update payroll and scheduling

You can also use more advanced software solutions yourself in an effort to manage the payroll and scheduling processes more efficiently. Scheduling software will help with creating the most suitable timetables, maintaining a stable work environment, and even sending helpful notifications to employees. Payroll software will prove to be quite as useful, allowing you to make accurate payments to all team members on the set date.

Work with a great EOR

Outsourcing your management responsibilities is also a great option. For instance, you can work with an experienced GEO employer of record (EOR) that will take over all the administrative and legal tasks associated with hiring staff. A professional EOR can streamline the onboarding process, simplify the payroll, take care of taxes, set up employee benefits, and even handle the laws and regulations related to engaging a global workforce.

Invest in communication

Improving the communication between all employees in the workplace can be another great benefit, especially if you’re managing remote teams. A company that fosters open, honest, and efficient communication will always be successful and strong, as its teams can collaborate and cooperate more effectively. A good leader listens to their employees, so make sure to ask for honest feedback and pay close attention to the issues, concerns and overall needs of your teams.

Provide good feedback

Apart from asking for feedback, you should also provide it. Communication is a two-way street, and business processes can only be improved when everyone helps one another. Make feedback a priority by praising your employees for a job well done and offering respectful constructive criticism when problems arise. This will help to make your employees feel more valued and appreciated within the organisation.

Prioritise respect

The respect between leadership and employees can be the biggest strength of any company. Regardless of their job, every person deserves to be treated with decency and respect. When you extend that courtesy to your employees, making sure to create a more honest, open, and supportive environment, you will be able to achieve your main objectives more easily. Employees who feel valued and respected tend to be more productive and efficient as well.

Remove workplace distractions

Distractions can have a detrimental effect on productivity in the workplace. As a leader, you have to identify the distractions within your own work environment and make efforts to remove them, whether that means reducing notifications, sending fewer unnecessary emails, or providing privacy for less social employees. When distractions are eliminated, stress is reduced, focus and attention are increased, and the overall efficiency rises immediately.

Focus on your main goals

Setting clear and specific goals can be quite helpful for a number of different aspects, including workforce management. Try to learn exactly what motivates your team, set your management goals around these aspects, and then align them with the company’s main objectives. Not only will this allow you to reach important milestones more quickly, but it will also help to build stronger relationships within the organisation.

Efficiently managing a workforce is never an easy task. But with the right mindset, tools, and some tips and tricks at your disposal, successful workforce management will be a bit simpler to achieve.

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.

Anna Honzáková was the very first Czech female doctor and gynaecologist, as well as being a women’s rights activist and opponent of abortion. She treated women both rich and poor, providing treatment free of charge to those who couldn’t afford to pay.

Medicine was seen for many years, even centuries, as a difficult profession unsuitable for the “weaker” sex. And in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the shift in public opinion regarding women in medicine took even longer than elsewhere. While Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman in the world to receive a medical degree, graduated from Geneva Medical College in the USA as early as 1849, and in the following decades female doctors also began working in Britain and France, women in Austria-Hungary could only dream of studying medicine right up until the beginning of the 20th Century.

As one of six children of the progressive physician Jan Honzák, who hailed from the town of Kopidlno in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic, Anna was interested in medicine from a young age. However, it took many years before she was able to gain access to a proper medical education – the fact that she was a successful graduate of the first girls’ grammar school in Prague only partially helped her.

Read the rest here.

Author: Anna Fodor

Czech Radio is hosting a benefit concert in support of Ukraine in Prague’s Rudolfinum Concert Hall on Monday evening. The concert, featuring the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, will combine music by Ukrainian and Czech composers. The proceeds will go to a collection organised by the NGO People in Need.

Ahead of the event, I caught up with the orchestra’s head Jakub Čížek to find out more:

“I think everybody knows that Czech Radio has already launched Ukrainian radio broadcasting, started making podcasts and other special broadcasts from Ukraine, having correspondents in the country.

“We tried to figure out what we could do for Ukraine and for its people as an orchestra. And since music is our job and it is something that we can do, we decided to organize this extraordinary concert to help Ukraine.”

The concert will open with the Czech and Ukrainian national anthems performed by the Czech Radio Children’s Choir. What else will be on the programme?

“It was actually rather easy to decide about the programme. We wanted to present both Czech and Ukrainian music. We will start with the composition Elegy by Valentin Silvestrov, probably the best-known living Ukrainian composer.“

Read the rest here.

Photo: Vojtěch Brtnický, Český rozhlas

Last year, Humanitas Afrika launched its newest initiative which is a youtube channel called UBUNTU IS PARADA. The name of the channel combines an African philosophy UBUNTU (unity, interdependence, interconnectedness, togetherness of humanity), and a beautiful Czech word PARADA (that translates as Cool) which has been the long-standing working philosophy of Humanitas Afrika.

Humanitas Afrika is an African-Czech NGO founded by Africans and Czechs in the year 2000 in Prague. The objective and work of the organisation have been to promote good relations and development cooperation between the Czech Republic and Africa and by extension between Europe and Africa with a particular focus on countries within eastern and central Europe.

Humanitas Afrika since it was established 22 years ago, has achieved a lot and positively impacted the lives of many people and society in its field of work. The organisation has also collaborated with many agencies and institutions in the Czech Republic and beyond to enhance the good relations it seeks to promote and to enrich the socio-cultural space in the society within which it operates.

You also could Join us, support us, collaborate with us as we bring peoples and cultures together in our great effort to repair, heal, rebuild and unite our one human family during and after the global coronavirus pandemic. Thank you.

For further info in English write to afrika@humanitasafrika.cz and in Czech info@humanitasafrika.cz

Website – www.humanitasafrika.cz
Facebook – Humanitas Afrika – African Information Centre – Africa Day CZ
Youtube – Ubuntu Is Parada

Humanitas Afrika Team

Fuel prices are continuing to rise and have already reached historic highs in the Czech Republic. The government has therefore decided to abolish the mandatory blending of bio-components into fuels and also to abolish the road tax on vehicles weighing up to 12 tonnes. But is it enough? And how will inflation impact the country’s industry and its citizens? I put these questions to Jan Vejmělek, chief economist at Komerční banka.

“Maybe I can start with a brief description of how important energy prices are for the Czech economy. The Czech Republic is an industrial country and has one of the highest industry per GDP shares in the European Union. Unfortunately there is quite a high level of energy intensive production here, which in turn means that the rise in prices means a huge rise in costs for Czech manufacturers.

Source

Author: Tom McEnchroe

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. One week after the Russian aggression on Ukraine, IFIMES prepared an analysis discussing some of the most obvious and important aspects and characteristics of the war so far. Some of the most important parts of the text entitled “Ukraine 2022: A Test for the EU and NATO” are published below.

Ukraine 2022:

A Test for the EU and NATO

The aggression of Russia on the Ukraine is an event that will mark the future of Europe as well as the global international order. A week after the beginning of the aggression on the Ukraine by Putin’s regime, some of the aspects and characteristics of this military expedition are very obvious and noticeable, along with their international dimensions, reactions and parallels from history.

The most important is the fact that a military operation, a war, is going on, what is without comparison in the modern European history after the end of the Cold War. The aggression and the consequent war present a ruthless, brutal and consciousness breach and neglect of a range of international legal, humanitarian and other rules that regulate relations between sovereign and independent states in international relations. Hence, the aggression is a military act, a precedence that has to be stopped and brought to a standstill, the international mediation and negotiation should be introduced, peace agreement has to be concluded and the responsible persons have to be brought to justice, processed for military crimes they did. European and world political, diplomatic, legal and military history have many tools at disposal for these actions. Here, also lessons learned from the recent past from the dissolution of former Yugoslavia, are highly useful for processing war criminals, as the International Court of Justice in the Hague can serve.

The Aggression, the Aggressor and the Target

The regime of Vladimir Putin has demonstrated aggression on sovereign and independent Ukraine, without any reason, without casus belli and without any effort to try to solve through available international instruments and mechanisms issues they thought should justify their use of military solution. Europe does not know such example after the end of the Cold War. Wars on the territory of the former Yugoslavia that culminated with the war in Bosnia, were part of the events that accompanied the dissolution of Yugoslavia as well as of the broader context of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In this case no such accompanying circumstances exist that the aggressor could refer to. And if they were, war is not the way for seeking solutions.

In addition, the aggressor to be has been continuously claiming, i.e. misleading world public and leaders of the western countries that there will be no war, that troops will pull back from the bordering areas after the end of military exercises, all these often articulated with an extreme cynical tone. When the aggression started, it was declared “a special operation” to avoid in a sarcastic and arrogant way its real meaning.

The attacked state, Ukraine, is the member of the United Nations (UN), the Council of Europe (CoE) and the participating state in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), to name only a few of the most important international organizations in which it is active. The aggressor, Russian Federation, is a member of the same these organizations as well. It is important to point out also, in the same frame, cooperation that NATO developed for these two countries: the NATO – Russia Council and the NATO – Ukraine Commission. With this, the North Atlantic Alliance stressed the importance of dialogue and cooperation with each of the countries and expressed its changed way of operating after the end of the Cold War, aiming at strengthening of the dialogue and the enhancement of stability, security and peace, including democracy.

It is also important po bear in mind that Ukraine has been member of the United Nations already during the Cold War, as a part of the Soviet Union (and Belarus as well). After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Ukraine and Russia established mutual, neighborhood cooperation that was productive and peaceful. Its peak was reached with the Minsk Agreement in 1993, according to which Ukraine handed over its huge nuclear arsenal to the Russian Federation to be given in return assurances for its security and independency. In addition to this, the signing of the Budapest memorandum under the auspices of the OSCE a year later, upon which Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine became parties to the Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), further on stressed the importance of security assurances.

From the military and political point of view, the attack is the continuation of Putin’s politics of destabilizing the area between Russia and the EU/NATO, which is primarily being manifested in creating frozen conflicts by the use of a combined political, military and hybrid activities. With this he is bringing back to life old Brezhnev’s geopolitical doctrines (that justify interventions in fellow socialist states) and sending the message that Russia has not given away its imperialistic tendencies. One could follow the implementation of this approach in practice. The most such outstanding examples are the attack on Georgia in 2008 with the consequent proclamation of the independence of the Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the annexation of the Crimea in 2014, and the current proclamation of the independence of the Donbas and Lugansk regions. Then the de facto occupation of the Transdniestria, where the former Soviet – and the current Russian – troops remained to be stationed since the Cold War time on the territory of the independent Moldova that for this reason chose the status of neutrality as the only country after the end of the Cold War doing so. In all these cases the pretext is the same: protection of the Russian population that is supposed to be under mistreatment of all the hosting states. There is a question, though, what would have happened, if sovereign states would use this approach to attack each other, in particular in cases of multietnical societies.

However, the policy community claims something different: the real target of Putin’s regime are democratic regimes. Democracy as a type of governance is, what the autocratic Russian president can’t stand. His solution to this case is in implementation of methods and tools that were common in international relations in the late Middle Ages and the early New Age. Putin intends to introduce the czarism as a way of governance in the globalized world of the 21st Century, by using the repression of the independent media and civil society. For this purpose, he is misusing multietnical and multicultural coexistence of such heterogenous states as Ukraine is. This is a dismantling of the world order, created after the end of the WWII, which to a certain extent is outdated – but its structural adaptation should be a result of a new agreement, reflecting the changed reality of this century.

Putin is not Russia and Russia is not Putin

The war in Ukraine, its development and characteristics could be better understood while comparing it with experiences and consequences of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The aggressor in BiH was the regime of Slobodan Milošević, who for that purpose used the Yugoslav People’s Army that was already in the process of its meltdown and hence remained with practically only the Serb troops.

But Milošević was not Serbia and Serbia was not Milošević. This in spite of extremely strong regime propaganda machinery that was producing media manipulations, misled and dispersing lies and was to a certain extent and a certain period of time also very successful. For the very same reason it should firstly be clear that also Putin is not Russia and Russia is not Putin. Henceforth, the time will come, when Russia will get rid of its current autocrat and of his cruelty and tradition, and will start a new democratic period, what would provide its future on different background.

Additionally, after a week of fighting it is obvious that the tactic of surprise and swift winning over Ukraine and its institutions with the doctrine of shock, didn’t work. Putin’s Blietzkrieg failed. This is a highly important lesson and a great deal of explanation is in a low morale of the occupying army, in its demotivation and unproper structure that is planned for short land operations. For this reason, a military takeover of Ukraine is not possible. Here, the aggressor can not make use of his some of very sophisticated niche armament that is world’s top, but not appropriate to a guerilla warfare. And it is exactly guerilla fighting that will develop across the attacked state, provided there will be no agreement on cease fire and diplomatic solution, but the continuation of the aggression instead.

If the aggression and the occupation continue, this will lead to a Vietnamization of the Ukraine. Within a military context this means the proportion 1:10 for the occupying forces to have at least theoretical chances to succeed. The American experience from Vietnam proves it not to be possible. And the Soviet – de facto Russian – experience from the Afghanistan that could be comparable with the Ukrainian one, only confirms it.

Also, the Ukrainian authorities and the international community as well have to clearly point out and condemn the engagement of mercenaries from various previous wars in the aggression. Along with this, one should not exclude a possibility that the aggressor would encourage forming paramilitary troops. This could enable him to distant himself from the atrocities and crimes that are already in place and will for sure be processed afterwards, since there is enough of legal practice for this from the legacy of the Balkan wars. It is fully obvious that the brutality is increasing, with crimes against humanity and war crimes taking place. Those, who planned this, and those, who are executing it, will be brought to justice. Highly destructive aggressor’s activities on the battlefield are seen from destroying Ukraine’s world renown cultural heritage and from humiliation of civilian population. Killing of a young Ukrainian biathlon champion illustrates brutality beyond comprehension.

Decisive and broad reaction of the EU and condemnation of war – a test for the future of the EU

The EU reacted fast, quite coordinated and decisive as never before. The scope of sanctions is broad, diverse and works. It confirms what more than hundred years ago Lenin claimed: Politics is concentrated economy. The Russian oligarchs know this the best and it is a question of time, when they will turn against Putin. A range of other activities has been launched, what all confirms that the EU has learned a lot from the past. Even more, if two, three months ago the impression was that the USA and Russia alone will discuss the European security architecture, it is clear now that the EU has become an actor and is moving ahead. All this is logical, necessary and understandable. The EU is demonstrating that with the use of soft power (diversity and scope of sanctions) it is possible to do a lot. One could be sure that its member states will increase their military spending, what the case of Germany already shows. The EU, as an economic giant, has an opportunity to become – with its activities to stop the war in Ukraine – an important factor in the international community.

Sanctions that the EU is increasing, have also initiated a variety of similar measures on other areas of civil society. A range of world’s NGOs, associations and other institutions from culture and sport is closing doors to the Russian sportspersons, artists and others, if they do not want to distant themselves from Putin’s regime. Even not long ago highly popular tours and appearances of top Russian artists are cancelled on a daily basis. This is a clear indication that Russia is heading with this regime towards increasing world isolation. Closure of the airspace, forbidding of landing of aircrafts and harboring vessels in world ports shows the power of civil society.

All these supports and encourages the Ukrainian politics and people in their resistance against the aggressor. Highly important are also, along with this, protests and demonstrations in Russia, organized by the Russian people, civil society, artists and others.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Western Balkans – New Putin’s Target?

The address of the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the European Parliament as well as his signature on the Ukraine’s request for the EU membership will give new impetus to the EU’s enlargement policy. Throughout the previous decade the EU kept on forgetting that enlargement has been a response and a solution to any of its big crises. Hence, the EU has to enhance its enlargement activities. This goes in particular for the enlargement on the Western Balkans. The intergovernmental conferences with Albania and North Macedonia have to be organized immediately and the negotiation process with both countries started.

Also, Montenegro and Serbia should be encouraged to deeper reforms. Kosovo has to be offered much more concrete and exact benefits. Bosnia and Herzegovina is the pivotal issue for the EU because of its past mortgage, when the EU introduced arms embargo on BiH and consequently disabled its right of an independent and sovereign state, member of the UN, to defend itself in 1992. This EU’s stain could be partially removed by its fast stream membership in the EU and NATO. At the end of the day, political will of member states is of key importance for a decision on membership.

The research community believes that the Western Balkans is of even greater importance, since Putin – when he will not succeed in the Ukraine as he believes – is seeking for new targets to try to “compensate” his failure in the Ukraine. These only could be countries of the Western Balkans, namely Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia. This possible scenario has to be prevented by all means already now. Sarajevo must not witness another siege and Kyiv must not become new Stalingrad.

The EU has witnessed another experience in this situation – its populistic autocrats that have tried to incite the EU’s value system, mechanism and solidarity from within, have gone underground. All as one are condemning Putin’s aggression and try to portrait themselves as defenders of human rights. They have no other current exit, but this does not mean they have changed their beliefs. For this very reason, the EU has to be on guard towards its inner antidemocratic front and to disable it with all legal tools and mechanism that it possesses and practically hasn’t been using them.

How to go Ahead?

The global democratic front has to be consistent, organized and systematically broadened with an aim to disable Putin and his regime to continue brutality and trample all of the achievements of civilization. This is important not only for this aggression, but also on the long run. When another such autocrat arises, mechanism will be at disposal and ready to process. It will work as a system of deterrence.

The EU now knows how to become a global actor and that its soft power works. Democracy, the rule of law and human rights as the most important and obvious values, that determine our lives, are at stake. It will be won.

With the global support that is being manifested as never before in so numerous ways, the Ukraine will continue, sustain and win, while criminals will be punished. International mediation should be established to organize peace talks, conclude an agreement and implement it. The case of Milošević and his foolish non-compliance to a series of peace agreements that he just signed and nothing more, the international community now knows what to be aware of and how to organize negotiation that will be implemented in practice.

Does the EU have Potential for Positive Changes in the Western Balkans?

Researchers believe that the Western Balkans is waiting for the outcome of the war in the Ukraine. The EU has therefore to introduce sanctions against all, who endanger peace and stability, using the example of introducing them against Putin’s regime. This should also be the case with those members of the Parliament of Republika Srbska that voted in favor of legislation that is targeting the constitutional order of BiH, making its dissolution possible and leading to a secession of the entity Republika Srbska. This would be similar as it was with those members of the Russian Duma that voted in favor of the independence of the so-called Peoples republic of Donjeck and Peoples republic of Lugansk on the territory of independent and sovereign Ukraine.

Destabilization of the Western Balkans started and has been intensified since the public appearance of the non-paper that attributes to the Slovene Prime Minister Janez Janša (SDS/EPP). He will for sure not be able to avoid responsibility if the armed conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina will occur, what is becoming increasingly likely scenario after the Russian invasion of the Ukraine. At the same time, European leaders from Viktor Orban’s group have to be uncovered. Orban is the key Putin’s operational player in the EU and NATO, coordinating their numerous activities from Budapest, while their connections with Moscow are either direct or covered.

Orban’s group of associates, popularly named “The Criminal International” is now trying to hide their connections with the regime of Putin. The initiative of the Slovene Prime Minister Janez Janša and the Polish one Mateusz Morawiecki that the Ukraine as well as the Western Balkans should be accepted in the EU membership on a fast track, is plain bluffing. Janša and Morawiecki and their Governments namely all the time behave within the EU on a subversive basis. Additionally, various non-papers that brought situation in BiH to the edge of war, attribute to Janša, whereas the Polish secret service, in cooperation with the Croatian pandan SOA, continuously works against Bosnia and Herzegovina, imaginatively presenting its bare two million of Bosnjaks as the Islamic menace that is supposed to threaten the EU and its 500 million inhabitants.

These all confirms the fact that the EU is infected with corruptive-lobbying activities of Russia that has almost paralyzed the EU and to much extent also NATO, having in mind the traditional split of the EU because of various interests of their member states. For this sake, the corrupt circles in the EU try to manifest their illusionary adherence and loyalty to the EU and NATO with nonsense initiatives, all with an aim of hiding their cooperation with the Putin’s regime and his corrupt network. This is also supported by the fact that the same company opposes the introduction of the EU sanctions against Milorad Dodik, Putin’s proxy in this part of the world.

There is a strong belief on the side of various policy experts that the EU should urgently introduce sanctions against Milorad Dodik and everybody that is threatening the constitutional order of BiH as well as against promoters of crime and corruption. The High Representative in BiH Christian Schmidt should dismiss from the office Milorad Dodik. His power rests only in the fact of being part of the state’s institutions, what enables him to be in control of enormous amount of public money, which is he using also for the corruption purposes of the EU officials and other international representatives. The High Representative Schmidt should take the decision to forbid everybody, who has been convicted for war crimes and the crime of genocide, to run for public positions.

One issue should additionally be kept in mind here: Budapest coordinates the so-called operation Fortress with an aim of crashing the economic system of the Federation BiH and its Prime Minister Fadil Novalić. The EU and NATO have to stop the intelligence operation Fortress against Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is coordinated from Budapest, Hungary, both the EU and NATO member state. Ever since the parliamentary elections four years ago, the new Government of the Federation hasn’t been formed according to the election results from 2018. Neither new judges of the Constitutional Court of the Federation have been elected for several years nor the President and two Vice-Presidents of the Federation. In parallel, Milorad Dodik has taken care of the continuation of the intelligence operation Fortress trying to achieve that the foreign exchange reserves of the BiH Central Bank will be forwarded to entities, accomplishing that way the crash of the monetary system of BiH.

The decision of the previous High Representative Valentin Inzko to forbid the denial of genocide was only an excuse for Dodik to boycott participation of representatives of Republika Srbska in the BiH institutions as well as for the announcement of adopting the package of laws in the entity Republika Srbska with an aim to take away state prerogatives of BiH and to deliver them to Republika Srbska.

Dodik is ready to proclaim the independence of Republika Srbska and following the example of Donjeck and Lugansk ask Russia for help and protection. Now it has become clear that this is a part of a broader and coordinated project that is directly linked with the Russian invasion of the Ukraine. The Western policy has after the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014 witnessed a collapse that has to be stopped now. Even before this it should have a look at its own composition and check the loyalty of the EU and NATO members. Russia will get stuck in the Ukraine, what’s the reason why it is looking for a “solution” in the way to initiate new conflict, now in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It remains to be seen, who will start it – and take over the responsibility and consequences for the beginning of the war. It is time for the West and the EU to finish its failed policy towards the Western Balkans and Eastern Europe.

Ljubljana/Washington/Brussels/Kyiv, March 7, 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.

From the Caribbean to the U.S., here are 11 amazing female-owned hotels to support during Women’s History Month and beyond.

There are many unknowns surrounding travel right now, but one thing is for sure: A stay at any of these women-run properties will be memorable. From the captivating mountain views in upstate New York to the dazzling beaches of the Caribbean, consider this your way to have a vacation and stimulate the growing sector of female entrepreneurism.

The Roundtree in Amagansett, New York

An avid traveler, Sylvia Wong was inspired to open a boutique hotel with two must-haves: simple luxury and warm hospitality. It was fate when she first visited The Roundtree property — not only did it exceed her expectations, but she knew its hidden-gem location would set her apart from other stays in the Hamptons. Plus, it had a rich history, as the homestead of one of the four founding families in town.

What makes The Roundtree special, according to Wong: “I wanted to create a modern, intimate hotel, so guests can feel like it’s their second home. [The property] is located right in the heart of Amagansett village, yet it’s surrounded by farmland and within walking distance of some of the most beautiful beaches in the area. Thanks to our team who makes the experience special, our guests genuinely feel as if they are staying at their second home, yet with the hospitality and service of a luxury hotel.”

See the rest here.

Russia’s bombing of a maternity and children’s hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol is a war crime, says the Czech prime minister, Petr Fiala. Mr. Fiala said on Twitter that Vladimir Putin was killing innocent women and children and that must result in deeper international isolation for Russia.

The Czech minister of foreign affairs, Jan Lipavský, said that the bombing of the hospital on Wednesday was further proof that Putin was a war criminal. He said the Kremlin would pay for violating human rights and international norms.

The Czech foreign policy chief discussed the situation in Ukraine on Wednesday with the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken. Mr. Lipavský said they had agreed on the necessity to beef up NATO’s collective defense, deterrence and energy security.

Source

Author: Ian Willoughby

Since the start of the Russian aggression in Ukraine close to two million people have fled the country. Close to 200,000 refugees, mainly old people, women and children, have found their way to the Czech Republic –on their own, with the help of volunteers or by getting on one of the humanitarian trains that the Czech government has been sending out to the Slovak and Polish borders daily. Our contributor Martina Kroa enlisted as a volunteer at Prague’s Main Railway Station to experience the humanitarian aid effort first hand.

At the Prague main train station volunteers in orange and yellow vests help refugees getting off the trains. They provide them with information, help them buy tickets, give directions, take them to a place where they can rest, eat, and find accommodation. Many of the people escaping from the war in Ukraine are taken care of by friends, and relatives or have a destination they are heading to. Prague also serves as a transit node for people heading to other Czech and European cities. Public transport and most of the trains are free for people holding a Ukrainian passport.

On the second floor of the Prague main train station, there is a place especially set up for the women and children to rest, lie down, and have some food. The medical team from the 3rd medical faculty is also stationed here. I spoke to Olga, a young woman, fleeing what is already the second war in her life: seven years ago, from Donetsk to Kyiv, and now from Kyiv, where she hopes to return one day.

Read the rest here.

Author: Martina Kroa

Europe is among the most important contributors to the global economy, representing the key grounds for employment, competitiveness, and growth worldwide. Although the effects of COVID-19 and Brexit can still be felt across the continent, the recent years and subsequent socioeconomic changes have also presented a number of new opportunities for international investors. In turn, Europe has truly become a magnet for lucrative investments, and here are some of the best countries to consider when investing in this part of the world:

Montenegro

Montenegro is an increasingly popular European destination for foreign investment, and it isn’t all that surprising considering the country’s sudden real estate boom and consistent tourism growth. You can easily find your dream house for sale in Montenegro with great views of the stunning local coastlines, a property investment that is bound to be in high demand for years to come. With the local currency being the Euro, Montenegro also offers some of the lowest tax rates in Europe, along with a steady economy and a strong legal framework, which makes this nation a solid option for prosperous real estate investments.

Slovakia

Although often overlooked, this Eastern European country shows great prospects. Based on 17 years of collected data including 2021, Slovakia has an average annual growth rate of 4.8% in real estate, and represents an emerging economy with plenty of potential for growth in nearly all sectors. This nation is also making real efforts to strengthen its political and legal institutions, aiming for a smooth economic expansion in the near future. Above all, Slovakia’s charming old towns and beautiful natural surroundings make investing in any property in this country a smart and profitable decision.

The UK

The UK is another hotspot for investment, and for a very good reason. It offers relatively low corporation tax rates, a business-friendly environment that provides incentives for foreign and domestic companies, as well as an ambitious ecosystem ideal for growing innovation. The UK is also home to the largest offshore wind farm in the world, it’s focusing on a net-zero carbon economy with revolutionary research, and its freeports aim to support trade and commerce across the country. The nation is truly a leader in many sectors, and investments here are bound to be fruitful regardless of the industry.

The Netherlands

The Netherlands tends to be overlooked as well, but it is also a great European country for smart investments. From science and IT to agriculture and energy, the nation’s key industries are truly booming. The country also offers a good location, first-class infrastructure, a great business climate, as well as a foreign investment agency that provides free and confidential services for starting and expanding companies in the Netherlands. Not to mention that the country’s legal, political, and social institutions are incredibly strong and market-friendly as well.

Germany

With a high GDP per capita of $45,733 recorded in 2020, Germany offers one of the most stable economies in Europe with great historical growth rates. Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) represent some of the most popular ways of investing in Germany, by offering diverse exposure to local companies through stock exchanges. The real estate value in the country has significantly increased over the last few years as well, making property investments another popular choice. Overall, Germany provides reasonable policies and legal frameworks along with a strong economy, meaning that investments in any sector won’t be a bad choice.

Europe has been a leader in many industries for decades and an even better destination for prospective investments. While each country on this continent might come with unique circumstances, the ones mentioned above are currently the best options for smart, profitable investments.

Alicante, Spain tops the list with 349 average monthly sun hours.

Nothing puts a damper on a perfectly planned European getaway than a sudden change in weather. So holiday rental search engine Holidu took a look at the places with the most sun hours per month to come up with the sunniest cities in Europe.

Topping the list is Alicante, on the southeastern coast of Spain, clocking in an average of 349 hours of sun a month and an average temperature of about 66 F that can be enjoyed on the beaches of the Costa Blanca and among the colorful homes of its old town.

Coming in second is Catania on Silicy’s east coast with 347 hours of sun monthly for effortless visits to its UNESCO World Heritage Site old town and La Playa beach, as well as taking in views of the active Mt. Etna. Third place heads back to southeastern Spain in Murcia on the Costa Cálida with 346 sun hours, which also boasts a stunning old town and a plethora of beaches with many coves suitable for swimming.

See the rest here.

By Rachel Chang

A cultural overview of Israeli art in Czechia in March.

Be with Israeli culture in the spring.

A world format drummer

16.3.2022 / 19:00 / Jazzinec / Trutnov
20.3.2022 / 19:00 / Jazz Dock / Praha
23.3.2022 / 20:00 / U bílýho černocha / Česká Lípa

Udi Shlomo is a drummer, composer, and arranger, from Kibbutz Nahshon, Israel, where he started playing drums and learning music when he was 5 years old. After 10 years of a successful career in Israel where he played with some of the country’s best musicians, Shlomo moved to Trondheim in 2010. On May 1, 2021, Shlomo releases his debut album “Diaspora House”.

There will be three concerts during his tour.
As part of Jazzinec festival, web here.
In Prague in Jazz Dock, web here.
And in jazzclub in Česká lípa, web here.

Uriel Hermann and Uriel Weinberger: a piano duo that will touch your heart

26.3.2022 / 19:00 / Jazzinec / UFFO / Trutnov

A unique duo from Israel. This is how the Jazzinec festival names the piano duo Uriel and Uriel. Israeli jazzman and composer Uriel Hermann has appeared on the Czech stage several times at the piano, but this time he teamed up with the talented multi-instrumentalist Uriel Weinberger.

Check out the Jazzinec festival web here.

Kunsthalle opened it´s gate

22.2.-20.6.2022 / Kunsthalle / Praha

Kunsthalle Praha is an international and interdisciplinary platform for art and culture. Kunsthalle opened to the public for the first time last month. Its inaugural exhibition is titled Kinetismus: 100 Years of Electricity in Art. The exhibition explores how electricity has transformed artistic practice from the start of the 20th century to the present day, four key areas are presented: cinematography, kinetic art, cybernetic art, and computer art.

The exhibition features over ninety works of art by several generations of artists from all over the world, including Israeli artist Yaacov Agam.

Website of the exhibition here.

Nani: I learnt ladino from my grandma

online in Czech

Noam Vazana, stage name Nani, is an Israeli singer who writes songs in the ancient Jewish language Ladino. While singing folk songs on her first album, her new album Ke Haber contains original compositions in this language associated with the Jewish diaspora. The interview for Radio Proglas with Nani (translated into the Czech language) is for listening here.

If you are interested in Nani, you can also read an older interview with a music expert (in the Czech language) Petra Dorůžky here. Nani will come to the Czech Republic in November.

Do you follow Eurovision? Israel has it´s candidate

online

Eurovision is a very popular music television competition in Israel. This year it will take place in Italy and Israel is sending a promising young singer Michael Ben David to the competition.

Find out more about him Eurovision website here or here or listen to his song here

Devashish Gaur’s layered approach to portraiture builds visual conversations between three generations of men in his family, exploring the intimacy and distance embedded in family archives.

There is a particular collage in Indian photographer Devashish Gaur’s project This Is The Closest We Will Get that stands out in its cut-and-paste simplicity. Entitled Me and Dad, it’s a portrait, black and white, cropped at the shoulders, but most importantly, it depicts two men instead of one. The sitter of the original photograph—an archival one that’s been collaged over—wears a checkered suit and his hair is neatly swept to the side. It feels formal, perhaps a little dated even.

Meanwhile, slices of a second face, arranged over this sitter, belong to his son—the photographer, Gaur himself. And their features, the contours and outlines of their faces, do seem to blend quite remarkably. Father and boy, artist and sitter, portrait and self-portrait, entwined.

Read the rest here.

Photographs by Devashish Gaur Essay by Joanna L. Cresswell

Najít nové zaměstnání, nebo lépe placenou práci, kterou jde sladit s péčí o děti. S tím sólo rodičům pomáhá Akademie práce pro samoživitele, společný program Klubu svobodných matek a společnosti JTI, jehož první série odstartovala v únoru. Účastnicím a účastníkům vypiluje životopis, zajistí kvalitní kurzy a školení a pomůže například i s hlídáním dětí. A hlavně pomůže vytipovat nejvhodnější pozice přesně na míru konkrétní rodině.

„Akademie práce je určená rodičům, kterým se nedaří najít zaměstnání anebo potřebují získat lepší práci, aby mohli být finančně nezávislí na druhých, na státu,“ říká Dana Pavlousková, ředitelka a zakladatelka Klubu svobodných matek. „Zkrácené úvazky, flexibilní pracovní podmínky, zaměstnavatelé, kteří si uvědomují, že pro samoživitele jsou děti prostě vždy na prvním místě, jsou v Česku stále ještě poněkud vzácní; situace je o to komplikovanější, když opustíme pohodlí dojezdové vzdálenosti do Prahy, případně dalších velkých měst. Přitom samoživitelek a samoživitelů je v Česku kolem 200 000 a řada firem neustále řeší nedostatek pracovníků a právě sólo rodiče obvykle patří k těm nejvěrnějším zaměstnancům,“ upozorňuje Pavlousková.

„V JTI ctíme svobodu volby. Proto podporujeme programy, které pomáhají lidem, aby si pomohli sami. Akademie práce je přesně taková – pomáhá lidem získat nebo posílit ekonomickou samostatnost, aby mohli žít život podle svých představ,“ říká Stephane Berset, generální ředitel JTI pro Česko, Maďarsko a Slovensko. „Toho, co říkáme navenek, se držíme i uvnitř JTI. Rodiče s námi můžou využít flexibilní úvazky, nedávno jsme například po celém světe zavedli nejméně dvacetitýdenní rodičovskou dovolenou s plnou mzdou, kterou můžu využít všichni rodiče bez ohledu na pohlaví, orientaci, nebo na to, jak se rodiči stali,“ dodává Berset.

Jedna z účastnic, Ivica, na otázku, co od účasti v projektu očekává, říká: “Očekávám, že se mi povede posunout se dál, najít si skvělou práci se skvělým kolektivem. Věřím, že se mi povede být opět o něco šikovnější a nebudu se bát pohovorů a nepříjemných otázek v nich.” Další z účastnit, Kateřina, potvrzuje, že situace pro ni, jakožto samoživitelku žijící ve Staňkově, napůl cesty mezi Plzní a Domažlicemi, je s rostoucí vzdáleností od větších měst skutečně o to složitější: „Zaměstnání hledám od minulého června, bohužel stále nemohu nic najít.”

Akademie práce sólo rodičům bezplatně zajistí podrobné vyhodnocení jejich stávající situace, navrhne a zrealizuje ideální řešení v podobě vytvoření dokonalého profesního životopisu a přípravy na pracovní pohovor, prezentace na sítích a pracovních portálech, zajištění rekvalifikačních, jazykových odborných kurzů, pomoci při vyhledávání konkrétních pracovních pozic včetně případné materiální podpory v podobě pracovních pomůcek.

Akademie práce navazuje na úspěšnou Akademii podnikání, ve které JTI a Klub svobodných matek pomohli 22 samoživitelkám odstartovat, či v době omezení mezilidských kontaktů udržet, svoje podnikání. Vznikla tak například baletní škola, výroba oceňovaných domácích marmelád, kadeřnický salón pro zvířecí miláčky, šperkařská dílna nebo krejčovská výroba.

Více informací k Akademii práce, včetně přihlášek, je k nalezení na https://www.klubsvobodnychmatek.cz/akademie-samozivitelek

Podnikáte? Nedaří se Vám sehnat spolehlivé zaměstnance a máte rádi flexibilní podmínky? Přihlaste se do programu Akademie práce také – vedle věrných zaměstnanců můžete získat i podrobné informace z praxe, jak pracovněprávní, tak lidské, jak si sólo rodiče a zaměstnavatelé nejlépe umí vyjít vstříc.

JTI je přední mezinárodní společnost zabývající se tabákovými výrobky a vapováním působící ve více než 130 zemích světa. Je globálním vlastníkem značky Winston, dvojky na světovém trhu cigaret, a značky Camel mimo USA, a má také největší podíl na prodeji obou značek. Mezi další globální značky JTI patří Mevius a LD. V České republice je JTI druhou největší tabákovou společností na trhu. JTI patří také významná pozice na mezinárodním vapovacím trhu se značkou Logic a na trhu zahřívaného tabáku s produkty Ploom. Společnost JTI se sídlem ve švýcarské Ženevě zaměstnává přes 44 000 lidí a již osmým rokem po sobě získala ocenění Global Top Employer. JTI je členem Japan Tobacco Group. Další informace najdete na www.jti.com

Klub svobodných matek poskytuje rodinám samoživitelů finanční, materiální a odbornou právní pomoc. Ve svých programech pomoci pomáhá s financemi na zajištění potravin a nákladů na bydlení, dětem hradí obědy ve školkách a školách, letní tábory a vánoční dárky. Příjemci pomoci jsou důkladně prověřováni a Klub spolupracuje s terénními sociálními pracovníky, azylovými domy a pobočkami Úřadu práce.

Czechs are known as one of the dog-friendliest nations in Europe, with around two million dogs living in a country of ten million. Apart from the globally popular dog breeds, such as Golden Retrievers, you can also spot breeds that originated in the Czech Republic. In the first part of our new mini-series presenting Czech dog breeds, we focus on the smallest of them – the Prague Ratter.

The Prague Ratter or Pražský krysařík is not only the smallest Czech dog breed, but also the smallest breed in the world in terms of its height. It measures between 20 to 23 centimetres and weighs around two and a half kilos. The ratter usually comes in black or tan colour and has short, glossy, hair.

Prague ratters are known for their intelligent and curious nature, but they are also believed to be one of the country’s oldest dog breeds. The first written records mentioning ratter dogs date all the way back to the Middle Ages.

By the time of the rule of Polish King Boleslaw II, the ratter was already an established breed. The king grew fond of these little dogs and brought two of them to his palace from Bohemia.

Charles IV, Holy Roman emperor and King of Bohemia is said to have presented three ratters to the French King Charles V as a precious gift during his visit to France in 1377. Historical chronicles and literary works also mention ratters in connection with other European rulers, including Rudolf II.

Source: https://english.radio.cz/czech-dog-breeds-8742713/1

Authors: Ruth Fraňková,Klára Stejskalová

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. In the context of the upcoming presidential elections, parliamentary and local elections for the City of Belgrade and 12 towns and municipalities, scheduled for 3 April 2022, IFIMES made an analysis of the current situation in Serbia. We bring the most important and interesting parts of the extensive analysis titled “2022 Elections in Serbia: Yet another attempt of ‘assassination of Serbia’?”

2022 Elections in Serbia:

Yet another attempt of “assassination of Serbia”?

In the Republic of Serbia, regular presidential elections, extraordinary parliamentary elections and regular local elections for the capital of Belgrade and 12 towns and municipalities are scheduled to take place on 3 April 2022.

At the parliamentary elections, according to the proportionate system, 250 representatives of the people will be elected for the Republic of Serbia National Assembly. Around 6.6 million registered voters are entitled to vote. On Kosovo, which Serbia still considers its autonomous province, pursuant to its current Constitution, the parliamentary elections will be held with the assistance of the international community and in the areas where the Serbs live. It should not be forgotten that the Serbs have entered Kosovo institutions under the condition that they be allowed to vote on Kosovo at all elections organized in Serbia. If the Kosovo Serbs are not allowed to vote at elections organized in Serbia, Serb political representatives could withdraw from Kosovo institutions or Serbs could decide not to participate at the next elections on Kosovo.

According to the current Election Law, the Republic of Serbia constitutes one electoral unit. The parliamentary mandates are distributed proportionately to the number of votes won. For political parties of ethnic minority do not pass the election threshold of 3%, the so-called “natural threshold” will be applied. The “natural threshold” is calculated by dividing the number of valid votes with the number of representatives, that is 250, for each position in the parliament, which depending on the turnout at the election varies between 12,000 and 16,000 votes.

Serb opposition did not learn from the mistakes of the Bulgarian opposition

Majority of opposition in Serbia had not participated at the last parliamentary elections and therefore could not have participated in the parliamentary life, including the decision-making process or monitoring of the work of the government and acting as a corrective to the government. Therefore, the work of the opposition reminded more of the work of nongovernmental organizations than of engagement of political parties. The conduct of opposition parties created deep disappointment among citizens, who expect from their respective political parties to actively participate in the political life and represent their interests.

The heterogeneous political opposition in Serbia did not create the synergy effect, which would have been generated had the opposition parties managed to interconnect and unite. Namely, these parties are ideology-wise diametrically opposite political parties headed mainly by leaders who already have a political history and many of they still have “political mortgage” from their previous political engagements.

Analysts believe that the Serb opposition should have learned from the mistakes of the Bulgarian opposition, which was aware that the ideological differences among them were too big, so they participated at the elections in “a number of columns” and with new faces with no previous “political mortgages”. As a result, they were successful in their third attempt and at the third extraordinary elections toppled Bojko Borisov’s (GERB) regime.

A lost century and yet another attempt of “assassination of Serbia”?

Serbia recently marked the 218th anniversary of the beginning of First Serbian Uprising in 1804, which was a turning point in the creation of a modern Serbian state and the adoption of the so-called Sretenje Constitution (1835), which was very liberal and progressive for its time.

However, the XX century was tragic for the Serbs and Serbia. The tremendous sufferings in World War I and World War II and the tragic dissolution of former Yugoslavia left traumatic consequences.

The first democratically elected and assassinated Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić said in this context, inter alia, the following: “the issue of a better tomorrow is always raised. I would like the people to start believing that tomorrow can be better than today. My philosophy of the Serbian history is that we wasted the entire XX century, and I am sure that the XXI century can be the century of our achievements.”[2]

In 2000, with the arrival of Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić to power Serbia initiated strong democratization and numerous reforms, which resulted in progress in all areas. Serbia became the epicenter of developments in the region and the leader in reforms. This historic progress was interrupted with the assassination of Prime Minister Đinđić on 12 March 2003.

After the arrival of Aleksandar Vučić and his Serb Progressive Party (SNS) to power, Serbia has once again become the epicenter of developments in the region and the engine of European integration. Significant economic results and accelerated progress on the path to EU membership have been recorded. Serbian President Vučić, together with Macedonian and Albanian prime ministers launched the most important regional initiative “Open Balkan”, which promotes regional cooperation and offers opportunities for economic prosperity of the region. Serbia has managed to maintain at the annual level a high level of foreign investments. Specifically, foreign investments in Serbia are at the level of around four billion Euros per year, which is more than in all other countries in the region together. It transpired that for Serbia the XXI century has become the century of opportunities and achievements. Throughout the history, whenever Serbia begun to move forward speedily, there were always attempts to slow down or halt its progress. A testimony of this from the recent history is the assassination of Zoran Đinđić, which was also a kind of “assassination of Serbia.”

According to analysts, Serbia has successfully repositioned and rebranded itself in regional and international relations, primarily thanks to the Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, who has managed to turn Serbia from an object into a subject in international relations. This is most evident through the dialogue between official Belgrade and Pristina in which Vučić managed to impose the “they cannot get everything, while we get nothing” paradigm. Subsequently, the US took the stance that the Brussels and Washington agreements have to be fully implemented – with an emphasis on the establishment of the “Community of Serb Municipalities” (ZSO). The letter that US congressmen had recently sent to US President Joseph Biden is a major recognition and support to Serbia, as well as the confirmation of the rightfulness of the policy Aleksandar Vučić has pursued so far. The letter refers to Serbian achievements in the area of economy, as well as the initiative the Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić had launched with several other regional leaders related to creation of “Open Balkan”, as a zone of free trade and free movement of people, goods, capital and services, which was described as a new paradigm of the Serbian policy.

The death threats recently made to President Vučić should be taken extremely seriously because of the experiences from the recent past and the assassination of Prime Minister Đinđić. Furthermore, such an “assassination of Serbia” must be stopped once and for all. In this context, the role of the Serb opposition is important. However, the opposition has still not made a clear and quality contribution to development of democracy, as the opposition in Bulgaria recently had.

Vučić’s position is most difficult

In the current constellation of political relations, the current President of the Republic of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić is by far in the most difficult position. Although Serbia, the region and the world are in a period of the corona crisis and security tensions and threats, Serbia and its President have proven themselves as a factor of peace and stability. It is important to finalize the dialogue between official Belgrade and Pristina with the signing of a comprehensive and legally binding agreement so that Serbia would have a prosperous and predictable future. In this respect, the most important task include economic recovery, development of the state and affirmation of Serbia in regional and international relations, as well as stopping the trend of emigration of population from Serbia and increasing the birthrate. In practice, there are constant attempts to undermine President Vučić and his government through joint actions that even include individuals from the Serb Progressive Party (SNS), who act in conjunction with a part of the foreign factor.

Analysts believe that because of the decision on declaration of military neutrality, Serbia and its President Vučić are under intensive international pressure to recognize independence of Kosovo, align the Serbian foreign policy with the EU, and particularly to introduce sanctions to Russia. The concept of Serbian foreign policy is founded on the EU – US – China – Russia + Nonalignment Movement rectangle. It is incomprehensible that the EU requests from Serbia to subject its foreign policy to the EU, while there are no guarantees that it will ever become an EU member.

Elections on future of Serbia

After arduous negotiations, the government and the opposition have managed to agree on the conditions and create an ambience for holding of free and fair elections. The opposition predominantly insisted on media representation and control of the election process. Political practice has shown that presence in the media is not of key importance for winning the elections. The most important element is to offer quality political programs, as well as credible and competent candidates who have the trust of citizens. At the last elections, the opposition made a mistake by boycotting the elections and/or focusing in its political “fights” on Aleksandar Vučić personally, while not offering any quality political programs and candidates who can convince the citizens to trust them and vote for them.

According to the public opinion polls the list of the Serb Progressive Party “Aleksandar Vučić – Together we can do everything” stands by far the biggest chances at the parliamentary elections. Due to the lowering of the election threshold to 3%, smaller political parties and parties of ethnic minorities also stand a chance to win mandates in the Republic of Serbia National Assembly. As for the presidential elections, the favorite is the current President Aleksandar Vučić, while the competition at the local elections and elections in the city of Belgrade will be most uncertain. It is expected that the turnout at the elections will be above 50%. For the future of parliamentary democracy in Serbia, it is important that in the coming period there is a strong and proactive opposition as a corrective of the government, which has not been the case so far- particularly because of the boycott by a part of the opposition. Furthermore, it is also important that the government and the opposition take a common and single stance on issues of national interest.

Ljubljana/Washington/Brussels/Belgrade, 22 February 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: Zoran Đinđić https://www.zorandjindjic.org/eng/quotes/

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES[1]) from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, Balkans and also around the world. Ambassador Dr Milan Jazbec, Professor of diplomacy, poet and writer, employed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia, presents and analyses the era of the previous German Chancellor Angela Merkel. He contemplates selected political, diplomatic and historical lessons as well as draws parallels with her predecessors, with an aim of wrapping up the image of a rare world leader. His article »After Merkel« is published in its entirety.[2]

After Merkel

When Paul McCartney was coining lyrics for Those Were the Days, performed magnificently and with touchy romantic crescendo by Mary Hopkin, a young, bright and promising student in Templin was dreaming of cracking nuts from theoretic physics, when growing up. After moving with the family from her birthplace in Hamburg, West Germany, to Quitzow, East Germany, the profession (a pastorate position) of her father was the reason, she got to know what would occupy her adult life. This author, at the very same time, was listening to Mary Hopkin (and The Beatles, of course), reading comics and science fiction and dreaming of becoming a journalist (what he later did). But above all he was listening to stories endlessly told by his mother about her life during the WWII years in Germany, southern from Dresden. She was one of tens of thousands of Slovenes, expelled from home by the Nazi regime and enforced to work, although being in her early teens. The first out of the three visits with his mother to those places, in the summer of 1981, through the neutral Austria and socialist Czechoslovakia to communist East Germany, gave him the firsthand experience of the Eastern Bloc affairs, not to say about the Cold War spirit on the spot.

The Chancellor and her Predecessors

As this issue is coming out, Angela Merkel still has approximately a month and a half to go, but her formal era in office is finishing. This fact offers a rather privileged point of departure for portraying her phenomenon. Taking a policy holistic approach, we will have a look at the Chancellor from three main points of view: history, topics and style, while commenting, comparing and dwelling on all of them simultaneously.

The post WWII German political history knows eight Chancellors, half of them from the CDU/CSU and half of them from the Social Democratic Party (SDP). They were in power 71,5 years all together, those from CDU/CSU 52 years and those from SDP 19,5 years.

Chronologically, the order of appearance looks like this:

1. Konrad Adenauer: 1949 – 1963 (1951–1955 also the first Minister of Foreign Affairs), CDU, 14 years (resigned at the age 87).
2. Ludwig Erhard: 1963 – 1966, CDU, (resigned), 3 years.
3. Kurt Kiesinger: 1966 – 1969, CDU, 3 years.
4. Willy Brandt: 1969 – 1974, SDP (the first SDP Chancellor since 1930), (resigned, when the Stasi agent was uncovered in his office), 4, 5 years (knelt in the Warsaw Ghetto at a visit in 1970, honoring victims), received Nobel Peace Prize in 1971.
5. Helmut Schmidt: 1974 – 1982, SDP, 8 years.
6. Helmut Kohl: 1982 – 1998, CDU/CSU, 16 years (the German reunification in 1990).
7. Gerhard Schröder: 1998 – 2005, SDP, 7 years.
8. Angela Merkel: 2005 – 2021, CDU/CSU, 16 years.

Three Chancellors stand out: Adenauer (14 years), Kohl and Merkel (both 16, the former a few weeks more). Adding to this the first one, the unification Chancellor Bismarck (19), it makes the big four.[3] Not only timewise, but also for the magnitude of tasks they were occupied with and for their ability to keep continuity in dealing with them. However, one could claim that the complexity of challenges was progressing through time, in particular because of the unprecedented advancement of the globalization proces that gained on structural intensity in the period after the end of the Cold War. This fact places Merkel on the most demanding position among her colleagues so far.

This brings us directly to point out the main topics Merkel was facing during her period, some of which have been manifested as global crises. Issues of global influence and importance that dominated the agenda during the previous decade and a half were: the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty in 2009, global financial as well as depth crisis, the Arab Spring, avian flu, migration crisis, transatlantic relations, Brexit, C-19 pandemic, geopolitical turbulences (relations between the USA, the EU, Russia and China), the Iran nuclear programme, the North Korea missile issues, Syria and Afghanistan, environmental crisis, the switch to decarbonization, including commemorating some important anniversaries, like hundred years of the outbreak of the WWI, 75 years from the founding of the UN, 80 years since the outbreak of the WWI, of the Ribbentrop – Molotov Pact, and of the Barbarossa operation, to name but few.

The heavy burden and responsibility of her role is perhaps clearly illustrated by the fact that she attended more than one hundred meetings of the EU Council during her term. Just by the way: there used to be two ordinary and two, perhaps three extraordinary meetings per year. During the financial crisis a decade ago there were four or even more meetings on average per month.

Her style has been marked by clear ethical code, understanding of welfare state (keeping the tradition of Germany being the first welfare state in modern world) as well as by her touch for social aspects of ordinary people. She knew, witnessed and exercised what power is. And also produced it on a magnitude. But she did not step over, what has ever since been the biggest, not only political temptation. If anybody, she made a step away from the Laswell’s definition of politics that claims politics is who gets what when and how. She restrained from this and made the case. Even though not being from Oz (however Dorothea by mid name), she has been a political wizard.

A bit reluctant, careful and never running before or over her shadow the Chancellor she has been. With this goes the fact of her being the moral authority in times of making difficult decisions. Also for she has always shared a strong, unquestionable belief in the rule of law. She kept on investing trust in this value with an outstanding, inspiring and remembered manner. And people also had a lot of trust in her. Well-deserved and well exercised. Her legacy consists of stability, reliability, human touch, thought over decision making as well as management capability and potentials. We’ve all witnessed this.

She also did what we did not happen to see in the recent political life in Europe: she did not actively take part in choosing her successor at the top party position. This is something of an unprecedented political approach.

With this she from one point of view manifested high ethical standard letting the party choose a person that is most trustworthy, reliable and promising. It will be the party that will have to live with the new leader primarily and much less, if at all, she in the retirement. And secondly, with that she obviously did not want to extend her political and personal influence beyond what she thought would be necessary. And besides this, there has been no guarantee that her possible choice (had it been there) would also coincide with the party affiliation. So why to bring another stressful situation in the top party leadership, when there was a need to focus primarily on the next term, the next leader and the next period.

In addition, she proved what synergy on the top political level in domestic politics is: she favored and de facto installed Frank Walter Steinmeier, as her former foreign minister and Vice-Chancellor from the rival, but coalition Social Democratic Party, as the German President (since 2017). Their unspoken understanding is far more than could be imagined in relations on the ultima level: their empathy and value along going that was put to test at many recent turbulent occasions is an example, sometimes bordering on telepathy. Also for this, Mr. Steinmeier is a top role model for the Head of a State in not only modern European frame.

A Future Eye on the Western Balkans

All those parameters placed her in the very center and heart of global politics and geopolitics. There isn’t a single characteristic of a great leader that she did not match with her best. This was, however, not always clearly visible and recognizable, but is getting progressively obvious with her forthcoming absence. Great leaders speak with their absence, this makes them visible. A certain vacuum, challenge and opportunity remain after her. Even more, one could claim there should always be a bit of luck in international politics. Angela Merkel produced this portion of luck on a high scale; and symbolism, leaving 150 years after Bismarck started.

As the only female German Chancellor (sworn in in 2005, after defeating her predecessor Schröder) and the youngest so far, she was also the only one ever that came from the East. Merkel rose in the East. Even more – one could say she is the last European leader with such personal experience. She shares a living memory from the former communist system that determined her country. This author believes that this heavily helped her understand politics, relations and life as well as contributed with the same magnitude to her leadership proficiency. What has been, to say so, luck for the whole Europe, since she could have easily got endlessly frustrated with that familiarity. A careful observer would name at least a politician or two of that nature in the current continental arena. Merkel’s outreach to migrants in the late summer of 2015 was a reflection of her human touch and understanding of people’s suffering. She grew up to see what does that mean.

As a matter of fact and as we all know now, things turned the other way round for a promising young scientist. When this author was the last desk officer for German Democratic Republic, West Berlin and Switzerland in the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the then Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, discussing development in the country of the future Chancellor with its last Ambassador in Belgrade H. E. Mr. Eiff, the advancing researcher was already taken by the stream of political events, becoming the CDU deputy chairperson in 1991, showing her emerging skill. The rest has become history in the meantime. However, also she did not know and did not, could not, expect all this.

Prior to our closure, in the spirit of this journal, the issue of the EU enlargement to the Western Balkans, has to be brought on the paper. Merkel inherited the benefits of the 2004 dual enlargement and had to live with its not so pleasant consequences as well. Two years after her start, Bulgaria and Romania became members of the EU, with Croatia and Albania again two years later members of NATO, and Croatia member of the EU four years later. Then the enlargement fatigue (an explanation far too simple, though, for the dynamics and complexity of the European integration process) broke out: no new EU members so far, with two new members of NATO: Montenegro in 2017 and North Macedonia in 2020. There are four EU candidate countries in the region: Montenegro and Serbia already negotiating, with Albania and North Macedonia still waiting to start the negotiation process, and two aspirant countries, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo. No magician could forecast the development. But, the majority of the EU enlargements were with more newcomers than only one and it payed off. The referred six of them should also enter en bloc. It will pay off as well. Merkel’s successor has been given something concrete to start with and be remembered for.

One should, at the end of a day, refer to the famous song of the Rolling Stones, released in 1973, when Angie was finishing high school in Templin, posing, not only in a manner of rhetoric, the question, “where will it lead us from here”. Perhaps the new German Chancellor Mr. Scholz from SPD, who is her true and not only formal successor, since they are by value orientation quite close, would know the answer. In any case, her departure means an end of the epoch. The prime time was hers.

From little baby brought to Quitzow in 1954, to a young employee at the Institute in East Berlin, with the PhD from quantum chemistry in 1986, to the Democratic Awakening Party spoke’s person in 1990, to the Kohl’s Mädchen soon afterwards and, finally, to the German’s Mutter (or Mutti in the cute manner), she evoluted above all to an everlasting Sphinx. Quite often with a smile on her face. And let us remember: Madame Merkel never was spending her time performing on twitter, but, instead, exercising exactly what politics is all about: doing things at her best for common good.

Discussing issues after Merkel means discussing Angela Merkel herself. Not enigmatic, as it might look like, but still not fully comprehended and understood in all aspects of her zoon politikon. And what a politician she has been. The modest daughter of the humble German pastor managed to achieve what an old Roman saying advices: leave the party at its best and you would keep it in the best memory. And – sic – she will also be remembered by her best.

Hence, let us conclude with fixing the statement that contemplating after Merkel in fact means contemplating her. Angela Merkel. Incomparable and great.

About the author:

Dr. Milan Jazbec is a Slovene diplomat, professor of diplomacy, poet and writer, employed at the Slovene Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and member of the first generation of Slovene diplomats. He was Ambassador to North Macedonia (2016-2020) and to Turkey (2010-2015, accredited also to Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria). He published over sixty books and is the author of more than 130 articles on diplomacy and related topics, all in fourteen languages. From 2009 he is the founding editor of the international scientific journal European Perspectives. Views, presented in this article are solely of his own and do not represent those of his employer.

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

Ljubljana/Berlin, February 16, 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] This analysis was first published in European Perspectives, Volume 12, Number 2 (22), October 2021, pp. 9-14.

[3] Bismarck was succeeded by Georg Leon von Caprivi (1890 – 1895), who had Slovene roots.

The third Saturday in February is World Pangolin Day, the purpose of which is to draw attention to the importance of protecting these unique creatures. These are currently the most illegally smuggled animals in the world. The Prague Zoo will draw attention to their threat with a rich program for the public.

SVĚTOVÝ DEN LUSKOUNŮ V ZOO PRAHA

Na třetí sobotu v únoru připadá Světový den luskounů, jehož smyslem je upozornit na důležitost ochrany těchto jedinečných tvorů. V současnosti jde o nejvíce nelegálně pašované živočichy světa. Na jejich ohrožení upozorní Zoo Praha bohatým programem pro veřejnost.

„Tito jediní šupinatí savci se v případě nebezpečí stočí do klubíčka a vůči lidem tak zůstávají zcela bezbranní. V Africe jsou loveni především pro maso, v Asii je navíc veliká poptávka po jejich šupinách, jež se využívají v tradiční čínské medicíně. Proto se také z Afriky do Asie tyto šupiny ve velkém pašují,“ vysvětluje ohrožení druhu ředitel Zoo Praha Miroslav Bobek.

Luskouni představují evolučně jedinečnou, starobylou skupinu bezzubých savců příbuzných šelmám, specializujících se na pojídání mravenců a termitů. Pro svůj vzhled připomínající šišku jsou nezaměnitelní – jako jediní savci na planetě, mají tělo pokryté chlupy přetvořenými do podoby šupin, které jsou stejně jako třeba kopyta či drápy jiných živočichů tvořeny keratinem.

Žijí v jižní Asii a v subsaharské Africe, na obou kontinentech jsou masivně loveni. Zejména v Asii se z jejich šupin vyrábějí přípravky, které mají údajně pomoci při kožních nemocech, problémech s plodností či krevním oběhem. Největšími odbytišti jsou Čína a Vietnam. Poté, co byly nadměrným lovem zdecimovány populace asijských luskounů, se pozornost ilegálního obchodu přesunula i na africké druhy. Důsledkem je, že všech osm druhů luskounů je zařazeno na Červeném seznamu ohrožených druhů IUCN do kategorie ohrožený vyhubením, dva dokonce jako kriticky ohrožené.

„Přestože Světový den luskounů zvyšuje povědomí o jejich ohrožení, pokrok v ochraně je stále příliš pomalý. V Zoo Praha se proto snažíme pomoci chránit luskouny různými způsoby hned v několika zemích. V Kamerunu podporujeme strážce chráněných území a v rámci projektu Toulavý autobus se snažíme o omezení lovu osvětou a vzděláváním místních obyvatel. V Laosu a na Sumatře se zase finančně podílíme na výstavbě a chodu záchranných stanic pro luskouny zabavené pytlákům,“ představuje projekty na ochranu luskounů Bobek.

Program na sobotu 19. února:

• Záhadný tvor pokrytý šupinami – savec či plaz?
• Kolik známe druhů luskounů a jak se od sebe liší?
• Z Afriky či Asie?
• Kreativní dílna pro nejmenší aneb fantasii se meze nekladou
• Problematika bushmeatu aneb co na talíř skutečně nepatří
• Etnozoologický výzkum
• Zoo Praha pomáhá, aneb seznamte se s projekty na ochranu luskounů

Akce probíhá od 10 do 16 hodin na terase a uvnitř Vzdělávacího centra poblíž hlavního vstupu do areálu.

Foto 1: Dvanáct upytlačených luskounů nabízených k prodeji na tržišti Nkoabang v kamerunském Yaoundé vyfotografoval tuto středu ráno ředitel Zoo Praha Miroslav Bobek. Foto Miroslav Bobek, Zoo Praha

Foto 2: Od roku 2017 je zakázán mezinárodní obchod s luskouny úmluvou CITES. Foto Miroslav Bobek, Zoo Praha

6 speakers, 6 emotional stories about #WorkplaceEquality and #ComingOut. Are you ready to experience Pride Business Forum Voices? 🏳️‍🌈 Book your free ticket now! https://lnkd.in/eG5yx8dg

👤💬 Stories will be shared by:
Armin Borries, General Manager Clearstream Operations Prague s.r.o.
Donna Dvorak, Manager Client Experience Training at MSD Czech Republic
Matyáš Boháček, ML&NLP Researcher at #dataclair.ai
Barbora Šikolová, Area Manager at Amazon
David Lemus Angarita (He/Him), Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Prague Coordinator at AB InBev
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The Czech government plans to cut the old-age pensions of senior communist-era secret police officers. While the idea is welcomed by some, calls have also been made to do more for the victims of the former regime, many of whom are on very low pensions.

As an opposition MP, Marian Jurečka of the Christian Democrats last year put forward a bill to reduce the pensions of senior officers of the dreaded communist-era secret police, the State Security, or StB.

That attempt failed. Now, however, Mr. Jurečka is minister of labour and social affairs – and he told Czech Television that he was still working on the idea.

“I plan that an amendment that we are working on, and which will come into force in January 2023, will include what I proposed before.

“We plan that really prominent representatives of the Communist regime, leading StB officers and the like, will have their pensions reduced.”

Mr. Jurečka said the proposal was being fine tuned with the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes, which does research into the records of that era. Between 5,000 and 7,000 people are likely to be affected, he said.

One person who has long been advocating such a move is Mikuláš Kroupa. He is the founder of Paměť národa, a group that documents the stories of people who experienced the Nazi and Communist regimes at first hand.

Read the rest here.

Author:Ian Willoughby

Glass and design leader LASVIT is illuminating the Czech Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai with Golden Rain, a groundbreaking six-metre-high organically shaped installation. The light installation is made entirely of recyclable metal and glass that marries technology and harmony with nature to showcase the process of manufacturing water from the air.

We spokes to Lukáš Cerný, LASVIT’s general manager for MEA & SE Asia, to know more about the unique project and how it aligns with Expo 2020’s focus on sustainability.

Read the interview here.

Hiring a consulting agency can be very effective when you have some doubts concerning your business. Regardless of whether you’re in the process of starting a new business and are in need of expert advice or are unsure if you should take a certain business deal, consulting agents are there to help. However, selecting the consulting firm whose methods align with your goals and preferences takes some consideration. Here are five tips to make that choice a bit easier for you.

1. Establish your goals first

In order to be able to hire a consulting agency whose services are in line with your needs, you need to establish what you wish to achieve with their help. That could be anything from boosting your business to even starting your own consulting agency. It’s best to write down all your expectations, so that you have a clear vision of what kind of consulting services you’re looking for.

2. Do a background check on the selected consulting agencies

Once you’ve established your goals, it’s time to look for a suitable company that offers consulting services. The upside of the internet is that, most of the time, you can easily learn a great deal about a company after a few clicks. Therefore, the first thing you need to do is find the websites of consulting companies and read about their services. If at first glance their offers match your needs, then you can dig deeper. This involves reading reviews if they exist online. Try to look for experiences of customers on the web pages that aren’t affiliated with the company to avoid biased comments.

3. Set your terms

Since you’re paying for consulting services, you need to find an agency that can provide them under your terms. Therefore, you need to take some time to think about what terms you should set. If the consulting agency doesn’t agree to your terms and you can’t come to an agreement, then you ought to look for another agency that is better suited for you. Certainly, your terms need to be reasonable, such as asking for the consulting agent to stay in touch and keep you posted regularly about how the process of building your business strategy is going. The chosen company should be able to adhere to your requests. For example, Juggle Strategies offers consulting services whose duration depends on what is agreed on during the first meeting. They are flexible and base their approach on your needs and desires. Another perk is that you can choose between virtual and face-to-face meetings. This company vows to work with you and your team to achieve the best possible outcomes.

4. Ask the right questions

Although you may hire a consulting agency for various reasons, you need to be prepared and essentially interview them to see if they are a good match for you. The first meeting with the consulting agent is crucial and you should make sure that you ask the right questions. This pertains to matters such as inquiring about their background knowledge, qualifications and learning about their approach, as well as the methods they utilize. It’s highly advisable to jot down all the questions beforehand so that you don’t forget anything. Don’t exclude even the minor details, as they can be the key to uncovering whether the firm is suitable for you.

5. Be clear about your goals

Sometimes, issues may arise not because there is a mismatch between the client and the agency, but rather miscommunication. In order to avoid any misunderstandings, you need to state your goals and terms clearly to the consulting agent. Only then will you be able to collaborate with them efficiently to achieve desired results.

Ultimately, hiring the consulting firm that is right for you comes down to a bit of planning and research. As you’ve seen, it’s up to you to set your goals and terms and be clear about them. Only then can your communication with the consultant be productive, and you’ll be able to ensure that their approach suits your preferences.

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.

A family who recently visited New Zealand’s Fiordland National Park got better GoPro footage than they were expecting thanks to a mischievous parrot who snatched the camera and took it for a flight.

The batty bird stole the camera and took off while it was still recording and captured some pretty cool video in the process, according to New Zealand news program Seven Sharp. The kea bird eventually dropped the camera, which the family was able to recover.

“It was a beautiful day so we were just sitting around, just watching the birds playing with everyone’s packs when my son decided to go put the GoPro on the handrail. And he promptly stole it,” Alex Verheul told the broadcaster. “He flew straight forward… We just followed the sound, went down there, could see them hanging out in the tree. They’d obviously heard us coming and just abandoned the GoPro. My son, he decided to go check the rocks… and there it was, just sitting there, still filming.”

Verheul said she was “really shocked” and “surprised” when she saw the footage.

By Alison Fox

See the rest here.

International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES)[1] from Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly analyses developments in the Middle East, Balkans and also around the world. Konstantin Sergeevich Strigunov, leading analyst of the Association of Information Operations Specialists (ANO), political expert and Andrey Viktorovich Manoilo, Doctor of Political Sciences, Leading Researcher of the Department of Europe and America of the Institute of Scientific Information for Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Science prepared the analysis about the current situation in Kazakhstan entitled “Color revolution in Kazakhstan 2022”.

Color revolution in Kazakhstan 2022

Events of the first decade of new 2022 year in Kazakhstan clearly showed not only that the power of systemic social and political destabilizing has not extinguished yet, but also that such destructive processes got new features tailored to the country, where they have been launched. It should be noted that the insurrection in Kazakhstan was triggered, like in some countries before, by actions of the public authorities, which doubled the prices for gas being a popular fuel in Kazakhstan, that served both as lighter and detonator for the future bloody bacchanalia.

The organized nature of the gangs’ assaults, which are still interpreted as “civilian riot” by some poor excuses for observer and analyst, was shown pretty clear. Indeed, it is fair to say that the people’s anger, which is righteous at the background of sudden worsening of their condition due to the authorities’ actions, was also present. However, which is not rare, expressly anti-state forces hid behind the people’s honest indignation. They started to manifest themselves from the very first days of protests, targeting the law enforcement authorities, National Guard, National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan for their assaults. They also seized, robbed and set on fire buildings of akimats (city administrations). The insurgency started in town Zhanaozen, but then spilled over some other cities, such as Aktau, Aktobe, Almaty, Karaganda, Kokshetau, Nur-Sultan, Uralsk, Shymkent. Like a hurricane, the unrest transformed into mass civil disorders, acts of violence involving murders of policemen, property abuse and looting.

Almost from the very beginning, the rioters proclaimed such political slogans as resignation of the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, resignation of the cabinet etc. Despite the authorities agreed to several relaxations, as e.g., reduction of price for gas in Mangistau region to 50 tenge and resignation of the cabinet (on January 5), none of them had any impact to already actively spread unrest, which had clearly grown to riot. A state of emergency was enacted, first in several regions and then on a country scale, on the same day. However, the violence did not stop and its scope was so pronounced and severe that the law enforcers and even army were not able to efficiently counteract the gangs and violence distribution.

Manifestation of people’s anger

At first sight (even in the very beginning of the situation only), indeed, it could appear that everything that was going on was just a manifestation of the people’s anger taken to the extremes by their desperation. Despite that was also present, as discussed above. Review of the events identifies pretty clear the peculiar features of control over the violent processes in the Republic of Kazakhstan. This way, the insurgents seized building of the National Security Committee in Almaty and emptied the armoires. Those were law enforcement and local authorities that were assaulted. There are videos showing distribution of weapons to the gangs right in the centre of the city, in order to use the same against the authorities and law enforcers. Information about two policemen found with their heads cut appeared.

The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Tokayev said in one of his speeches that 20 thousand gangsters operated in Almaty only. Some analysts believed that such number is somehow overstated, but it does not appear to be unplausible, when speaking about all criminals participating in the riot, not just about the core of the same. It is clear that the core of the riot was smaller, but it acted as an organizing base in this case. It is important now to understand how it turned out that such massive assault was missed. Was that just negligence or treason? What was the core of the riot, who was a part of it and who guided the core? In order to treat the matter in a comprehensive manner, we need to make a brief introduction, as to enable to have a complex outlook of the matter.

Due to its historical, social and cultural features, Kazakhstan is a specific state, where the tribalism is present, i.e., when the politico-social structure is based on the tribal community. There are the so called zhuses in Kazakhstan, which essentially represent the tribal unions on the specific territories. Therewith, the more far located from the cities, i.e., in some far rural regions, the more important role is played by these tribal and unofficial relations than the state laws. In general, the most part of residents of such regions gives a priority to tribal and clannish unions over the state. It should be noted that pejorative word “mambet” (and a number of some other words that we shall not mention) is used to denote a resident of rural area, which means an undereducated, ill-mannered and unruly man (i.e., scum). Such environment with population lacking education, but having strong clannish and tribal ties, living under hard social and economic conditions, often shows enhancement of criminal relations. As a matter of fact, the organized crime became some kind of compensation mechanism, where the state authority got weak or it is missing, in full or in part. Preparation to a riot seems to be a well possible task for such depressive regions, whereas intelligence work is more difficult (while not impossible) there and requires substantial resources. Remarkably, such communities already have ready organizational structures of at least lower level, which are covered by criminality due to local rules, belonging to some ethnic (tribe) etc. This point is of special importance for us.

We believe that the events of Kazakhstan are likely to be a consequence of enormous fail of the security services and law enforcement authorities. Considering that the most severe fights with the authorities take place in such cities as Kyzylorda, Almaty, Taldykorgan (where the anti-terror operation is being implemented) and Shymkent and Taraz, various questions arise. By way of example, these cities are located near the border with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, where the border control is rather difficult. It’s no wonder: border length between Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan is 1,212 km, and 2,351 km between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. Total – 3,563 km. Considering that total number of Military Forces of Kazakhstan, its National Guard and other military units is about 100 to 120 thousand people (with total population of a bit more than 19 million living in the country with an area of 2.7 million square kilometres), it can be concluded that the borders are quite sparse and various instigators, including criminals, can penetrate to the Republic of Kazakhstan through them. The presence of the latter is indirectly evidenced by messages about repatriates from Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan among the rioters.

In fact, it will not be a problem for transnational crime to establish itself in the Republic of Kazakhstan by interaction with local criminals, whose representatives impose tribute on entrepreneurs, shops, and markets. Criminal authorities also participated in the riots themselves, like Arman “Wild” Dzhumageldiev (he was recently arrested), who was known for his connections with Turkish mafiosi, such as Sedat Perker, who had close ties to the Turkish intelligence service MIT. There is evidence of close contacts of Arman the “Wild” with the criminal authorities of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Azerbaijan (in particular, code-bound criminal Nadir “Loto Guli” Salifov). It is known that Mr. Dzhumageldiev tried to legalize himself in politics. By the way, he was behind the Russophobic “language patrols” in Kazakhstan. In fact, this representative of the criminal world is embedded into the pan-Turkic project, the centre of which is Turkey. It is known that the Turks actively use illegal methods and means in parallel with spreading of their influence through the Turkish armed forces, instructors, sale of military equipment (assault and reconnaissance UAVs, etc.), creation of NGOs and NCOs, “cultural centres”. In particular, they do it by supporting the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist organization, banned in Russia, by using terrorist proxy groups in Syria, Libya, etc., together with the SADAT private military company. With that, another specific and unadvertised part of the Turkish expansion is the use of crime which actively interacts with criminals in other Turkic-speaking states (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan) and not only in them. This solves several problems at once.

Firstly, management of criminal flows is intercepted, in particular, regarding drugs, which, as you know, also go through the Central Asian region to Turkey, and then get to Europe, which is one of the largest markets in the world, through the Balkans.

Secondly, informal, but very important connections and influence in Turkic-speaking countries are established and strengthened. In fact, the increase in influence on crime in certain regions can exceed the influence that local governments have.

Thirdly, it becomes potentially possible to create sleeper cells through agents embedded in criminal structures, which can be reactivated at the right moment to destabilize the socio-political situation in a certain country.

Fourthly, criminal elements are integrated into local ethnic (tribal) groups (unions), which means that they receive ready-made grassroots organizations, to a certain extent, that can be used for a rebellion subject to an agreement with local elders and “authorities”, who will receive their share if the “event” succeeds.

Fifthly, outright extremists and terrorists including those returning from conflict zones can be introduced under the guise of criminal elements (it should be noted that it was the Turks who took part in the Syrian war providing logistical, informational, and resource support to the Kazakh militants, and Turkey itself was a refuge for them).

Sixthly, presence of regions and social (ethnic and tribal) strata that are difficult or impossible to control for the authorities of the country creates significant opportunities for those officials and representatives of individual clans who have lost the apparatus struggle and have been thrown out of power structures, which means they have been deprived of their powers and moved away from social and material benefits that gave them the high official status formerly.

That last point should be considered in more detail. Considering the scale, level of coordination, and fierceness of the rebellion, its extremely high dynamics (in fact, the rebellion in Kazakhstan overcame the path that the “Maidan” in Ukraine went in a few weeks in three days), there were more than weighty suspicions that what was happening in Kazakhstan was not only a colossal failure in terms of its scale, but also a betrayal of persons from among the leadership of the state, secret services, and law enforcement agencies. Then the high efficiency of the rebels’ actions becomes understandable. It also becomes clear why the Almaty NSC administration building was surrendered almost without a fight. This is also indicated by the message of January 8, according to which the former head of the NSC of the Republic of Kazakhstan Karim Masimov, who is suspected of treason, has been detained. It is worth noting that the clans in power also took advantage of the situation in the nomenclature struggle with each other. Presumably, the clan associated with Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev will be pressed out as a result of the rebellion suppression.

The picture of the situation

Thus, the following situation emerges. With a high degree of probability, the core of the rebels were trained provocateurs from among criminal structures, former or current secret services, and radicals (it should be noted that some of them were likely to be of exogenous origin, as Mr. Tokayev stated). A significant part of the “mambet” rioters turned to robbery, looting, and murders, which added to the confusion. At the same time, it is important to note the fact that, at a certain stage, network resources controlled by the West joined coordination of the rioters, like the notorious Nexta, the telegram channel controlled by Polish secret services, which coordinated the unrest in Belarus during the so-called “Belomaidan” in August to September 2020. This channel is still active. In addition to Nexta, social networks, such as Twitter and Reddit, were also “marked”, where an entire campaign was unleashed to discredit the presence of the CSTO troops in Kazakhstan.

There were also odious characters, such as, for example, Mukhtar Ablyazov, who actively campaigned against the authorities of Kazakhstan and took the side of the “protesters” from Kiev. Besides, it would be expedient to say about the alleged participation of the UK in these processes, which almost manages Turkey’s foreign policy according to a number of analysts. Since there is less and less doubt about the presence of the Turkish trace in the rebellion in Kazakhstan, then, following their logic, London should also be behind this. In reality, everything is naturally much more complicated and it is wrong to consider Turkey a kind of a British puppet. Yes, of course, there is the influence of London, but the Turks themselves are largely subjects, although they do not act without looking to the West. However, their resources and political will, as well as their unique geopolitical position, make it possible to play an independent game. Ankara is well aware that the West is unlikely to harm Turkey, which is part of the NATO, since a strike against it will automatically strike at the alliance itself, and also because neo-Ottoman pan-Turkism under Erdogan fits well into the strategy of the West to constrain Russia and China.

It should also be noted that Kazakhstan is an important country both for Russia, since the two countries have historical, cultural (to a certain extent), political, military, and economic ties, and for China, since one of the routes of its global project “One Belt, One Road”, a giant transcontinental infrastructure and logical network launched by Xi Jinping in 2013, passes through the Republic of Kazakhstan. By the way, he announced its creation exactly in Kazakhstan in 2013. Therefore, destabilization of the Republic of Kazakhstan affects both Russia, reducing its influence on the post-Soviet periphery, and China, since it is potentially capable of hindering the implementation of the Chinese mega-project in the Kazakh territory. A ricochet blow can also hit Iran, which also participates in this project logistically connected with the Central Asian region.

In connection with the foregoing, it should be noted that the decision to bring in the CSTO contingent was inevitable, since almost the only way out in the conditions of a combined attack on Kazakhstan from outside and inside was contacting that particular military organization. Nevertheless, bringing in the peacekeeping contingent of about 5 to 7 thousand people (3/4 consisting of the Russian military forces) is fraught with certain risks. Let us mention them:

1. external and, apparently, internal forces will use the fact of deployment of the CSTO troops to stabilize the situation in Kazakhstan for anti-Russian purposes (a massive stream of fakes about Russia’s “occupation” of Kazakhstan is already being observed);
2. there are risks when the blame for suppressing the internal conflict between the elites and the people can be laid by this very people on external “interventions” (that is, not instigators from clans and criminals are to blame for ethnic violence and human casualties, but the troops of the “new Warsaw Pact” that repeat the “Prague Spring” in Kazakhstan);
3. in the long term, external actors may try to create several zones of instability, including those in the countries of Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan), as well as to repeat the Belarusian scenario of 2020 taking into consideration the failure of the year before last;
4. there is a possibility that this way (through activation of several crisis situations along the perimeter of Russia at once) they will try to create the effect of an overstrain of Moscow’s resources, and try to deprive it of manoeuvre at the same time;
5. it is possible to activate destabilization processes inside Russia in synchronization with external crises to create a destructive synergistic effect.

Further, we note the following specific features of the coup attempt in Kazakhstan:

1. a pronounced factor of crime in the actions of the rebels;
2. merging of organizational structures in tribal alliances with local crime and transnational crime, which, in conjunction with foreign secret services and, presumably, renegades from among local secret services and officials, managed to create stable intelligence and combat networks;
3. the factor of transnational crime has become one of the key ones in establishing channels of communication between apostates from among state officials and secret services of the Republic of Kazakhstan with foreign secret services;
4. to a certain extent, the use of the “DDoS revolution” technology described by the authors back in 2019 was observed in Kazakhstan. Its essence is in the following. We noted that “the danger is that such processes [protests and riots – author’s note] can pass at approximately the same time, but in spatially separated areas. In this case, it is much more difficult to adequately respond to them. In small states, the transfer and concentration of the required number of security forces at a specific location in the shortest possible time is much easier because of short distances. However, in states with a fairly large territory, such as China or Russia, resource manoeuvring becomes more difficult due to significant distances between cities […] Consequences of such delay can be devastating. Thus, there is a superposition of instabilities: with an increase in the number of cities engulfed in unrest, there will be an exhaustion of the authorities’ ability to control the situation. As a consequence of this, as the environment continues to deteriorate, the authorities’ resources will continue to dwindle rapidly, and their ability to stabilize the situation will be drastically declined. As a result, a self-sustaining deregulation regime will arise with arising of a negative synergistic effect[2]. Apparently, this effect manifested itself to some extent in the events in Kazakhstan (due to the area of the Republic of Kazakhstan). The threat of such technology is of particular significance for Russia given its size.

At the same time, the situation in Kazakhstan revealed a number of the following positive aspects:

1. a precedent arose for using the CSTO military force to suppress color coups attempts, which can be used in the future if, with competent actions by Russia and the CSTO, it does not cause rejection, but, on the contrary, becomes associated with stabilization;
2. the CSTO has had a chance to actually show its usefulness, since there have been more and more talks about the fact that this organization is incapacitated in the recent years, which is not at all the case, as the events in Kazakhstan have demonstrated;
3. it became possible to advertise the actions of the CSTO peacekeeping contingent in the most positive aspect, subject to competent actions in the political and diplomatic line and in the information and psychological sphere;
4. stabilization of the situation in Kazakhstan with the participation of the CSTO will stabilize the entire Central Asian region and the entire post-Soviet territory (CIS).

A powerful factor in the events in Kazakhstan was operations in the information and psychological sphere, to a certain extent comparable in their importance to counter-terrorist operations to restore order. This is explained by the fact that the actions of the CSTO in the event of a loss in the information war will be presented in the most negative light and will cause rejection among the population of the Republic of Kazakhstan and other CIS countries, which will be extremely difficult to change in the future. In this regard, it becomes extremely important to create a specialized center for counteracting information operations and various forms of coups, including color revolutions, adapted to the conditions of a particular country participating in unions in the post-Soviet territory (CIS, CSTO, the Union State of Russia and Belarus, etc.). At the same time, experts with theoretical skills and practical experience in countering the aforementioned threats are needed. With such a structure and experts acting in close coordination with the CIS/CSTO member countries (the authorities of these countries, their departments, and analytical structures), it is possible to achieve positive synergistic interaction to repel the threats that we have observed over the past year and a half in Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan.

There is practically no doubt that some foreign actors will try to aggravate the situation along the perimeter of Russia as much as possible by 2024, by the time of the presidential elections in the Russian Federation. Therefore, there is very little time left and the increase in fake news against the CIS and the CSTO countries, activation of coup and war attempts (like the Second Karabakh War of 2020) in the countries adjacent to Russia clearly indicates that external aggressors will try to “load” Russia and its allies as much as possible by 2024 to enhance the destructive effect. It should be noted that stability in the CIS countries is maintained largely thanks to Russia, which was shown by the crisis in Kazakhstan. Therefore, destabilization of Russia will automatically create a devastating blow to all countries of the CIS. Consequently, each member country of this organization has a common interest in preventing the escalation produced by destructive forces both from outside and from within these countries, since we mean preserving their statehood and territorial integrity. However, effective coping requires adequate structures capable of counteracting such threats systematically and in all areas, particularly, the information threat.

About the authors

Konstantin Sergeevich Strigunov – leading analyst of the Association of Information Operations Specialists (ANO), political expert. Konstantin Sergeevich was one of the key participants in the successful information operation in Venezuela in 2019, carried out under the leadership of Andrey Manoilo.

Andrey Viktorovich Manoilo, Doctor of Political Sciences, Leading Researcher of the Department of Europe and America of the Institute of Scientific Information for Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences, professor at Lomonosov, member of the Scientific Council under the Security Council of Russia.

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

Ljubljana/Moscow, 10 February 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] See A. V. Manoilo, K. S. Strigunov. Non-classical warfare technologies. Genesis. Evolution. Practice. ‒ Goryachaya Liniya ‒ Telecom Moscow, 2020. ‒ 378 p.

Data published on the global athletics app Strava shows that Czech amateur cycling has a record holder. Kateřina Rusá, a hobby cyclist in her mid-thirties, rode over 50,000 kilometres in 2021. That’s hugely more than the women in the professional peloton. The Dutch racer Annemiek van Vleuten, competing for the Movistar team, took the first place in the ranking of female cycling professionals who put their rides on Strava with 30,352 km. The runner-up, the Italian Erica Magnaldi of the Ceratizit team, rode a “mere” 25,471 km last year.

“Whenever I did any sport, I went all out. I used to play volleyball up to five times a week and I always wanted to improve. When my knees started to hurt after years on the volleyball court, I decided to switch to cycling,” comments Kateřina Rusá on her passion for long distances. The year before last, she circumnavigated the globe virtually clocking up the total distance of 45,678 km. Last year she surpassed the incredible 50,000 kilometres mark. The total elevation gain of her rides equals climbing Mount Everest thirty-eight times. She spent 2,000 hours in the saddle and averaged around 1,000 kilometres per week throughout the year regardless of the weather. And all this while working full-time! Kateřina is an ambassador for the Czech bicycle manufacturer Festka.

Kateřina Rusá (*1986) graduated from the University of Economics in Prague and works as a language editor for a major Czech online magazine. She is a two-time national champion at scrabble.

Interview with Katka here: Obsessed with cycling? Maybe… — FESTKA

About Festka

Festka is a Czech technology company that specializes in the custom production of road bikes and frames of the highest quality. The company‘s headquarters and production facility are located in the center of Prague, Czech Republic. Its clients include many interesting people – Hollywood celebrities, people from big business, as well as those who discovered cycling later in life as their preferred form or exercise and want (and can afford) to ride an exceptional bike. Festka is renowned for its cooperation with top notch institutions such as the European Space Agency and the Czech Technical University. The firm was founded by former pro cyclist Michael Moureček and his entrepreneur friend Ondřej Novotný. From the very beginning, the creative side of things has been the work of Tomáš Hnida. Approximately 90% of the frames and full builds that leave Festka‘s production facility are exported, with 80% of production going to customers outside the EU – Asia (China, Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines), USA, and Australia.

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