Czechs Won't Take Obama's Gitmo Graduates

Czechs likely to refuse to accept Guantanamo prisoners

The Czech Republic will probably refuse to accept prisoners from the U.S. Guantanamo prison, Mirek Topolanek, outgoing Czech Prime Minister and chairman of the senior ruling Civic Democrats (ODS), told the Impuls Radio today.

He said the National Security Council today recommended not to accept the Guantanamo prisoners and added that Guantanamo would be one of the topics during U.S. President Barrack Obama's visit to Prague at the weekend.

Topolanek, whose government offered its resignation last Thursday after the Chamber of Deputies voted no confidence in it two days earlier, said he expected Obama to express the U.S. position on the situation in Afghanistan and the planned missile defence radar base in the Czech Republic during his visit.

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Apart from meeting the heads of 27 EU member states and delivering a speech Obama will also have bilateral talks with Czech representatives.

Topolanek said, however, the talks would be formal.

He said he expected the U.S. request for transferring some of the Guantanamo prisoners to the Czech Republic to be one of the topics during Obama's talks with Czech officials.

Obama intends to shut down the U.S. prison situated in Cuba where people suspected of terrorism are detained.

"Many countries have a similar view. We do not expect to yield to the pressure for accepting the prisoners," Topolanek said on Impuls Radio.

"We held a meeting of the National Security Council today that did not recommend this step. We have no facilities for it. It will bring many problems," Topolanek said.

The planned building of a U.S. missile defence base in the Czech Republic could also be one of the topics, Topolanek said.

"The Americans expect that we are expecting them to express some position on the issue. We are expecting the Americans to announce no fundamental changes [in their position,]" Topolanek said.

He said the U.S. administration was now mainly solving the domestic economic problems.

"The radar is certainly not the number one topic in their foreign policy," he said.

No, it certainly isn't. The foreign policy of Obama is to give a hummer to Amahdinejad, Komrade Hugo and Putin. SecDef Gates says that the US is not prepared to shoot down Kim Jong mentally-Il's ICBM. I strongly suspect that the real reason is that El Jefe' is scared shitless that it would be just like February 28, 2008.

Topolanek added that the installation of the radar in the Czech Republic would probably be delayed.

The Czech government signed two treaties on the construction of a missile defence radar base in the Brdy military district, 90 km southwest of Prague, with the previous U.S. administration of president George Bush.

The Chamber of Deputies has not yet ratified the treaties and the opposition is opposed to them.

Obama is likely to present his key address European speech of the year during his two-day visit to the Czech Republic at Prague Castle around 10:00 on Sunday after his talks with Czech President Vaclav Klaus, according to CTK's unofficial information.

Obama's complete agenda is to be officially released this week.

On Sunday afternoon, Obama will probably meet former Czech president Vaclav Havel.

When you hang your allies out to dry, Barry, don't expect them to do you any favors.

EU Constitution, Meet Bus

Czech PM's party may trade Lisbon treaty for U.S. base
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek (Civic Democrats, ODS) said today he cannot imagine ODS lawmakers supporting the Lisbon treaty unless parliament passes the Czech-U.S. treaty on stationing a U.S. radar base on Czech soil.

"It is hypothetical. In view of that the ODS group (of deputies) has 81 members and I think that I know opinions of most of them, it is very difficult for me to imagine that the deputies, or ODS senators, would vote for the Lisbon treaty if the ratification of the treaty with the United States failed," Topolánek said on Radio Cesko.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Czech counterpart, Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, signed the main treaty on stationing the radar base on Czech soil in Prague on Tuesday.

Topolánek said "It is not entirely acceptable to connect it like this. But for the deputies who can make a free choice, it can be a certain aspect that will play a role in the decision-making."

To take effect, the treaty must be ratified by Czech parliament and signed by the president.

And President Vaclav Klaus has said that he is ready "without any hesitation" to sign the treaty

Support for it particularly in the lower house is, however, uncertain. It is rejected by the opposition and also by some government Green Party deputies.

Treaty opponents are claiming "that the US anti-missile defence shield in Europe is likely to be abandoned by the next American administration". If Barack [deleted] Obama is elected POTUS, he may very well do just that.

But be very careful of what you wish for. Barry O could also decide that it's time for Europe to take care of Europe and bring all American forces home. But what about NATO you whine? Surrender Monkey Logic says that the need for NATO ended when the Berlin Wall came down. After all the NATO treaty is . . . just words . . . .

The Lisbon treaty, which Topolánek signed for the Czech Republic, is opposed by some deputies from his party, the ODS. It was on their initiative that the Senate sent the treaty to the Constitutional Court to check whether it is in harmony with the Czech Constitution.

Via ČeskéNoviny