Oct. 17, 2008: Prime Minister Welcomes Abolition of Visa Obligation for the Czech Republic

Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek welcomes the statement made by US President George W. Bush on the abolition of the visa obligations for the citizens of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. In his opinion this is the result of the long-running and systematic efforts to introduce mutual visa-free contacts with the United States. 

“I regard it as a great success of my administration, after the establishment of the Institute for the Studies of Totalitarian Regimes, after my medal awarded to the Mašín brothers, and after the start of discussions on this country’s third (anti-Communist) resistance movement, and after the abolition of frontiers in Europe. In actual fact, this is the greatest achievement we could attain. This removes the last vestige of communism and the cold war, and it makes me very happy indeed,“ Premier Mirek Topolánek was quoted as saying on the planned visa waiver. 

The Czech Republic was the first country to have signed with the United States last February a Memorandum of Understanding on the incorporation of the Czech Republic in the Visa Waiver Program, in spite of criticism of this approach from the European Union. Conclusion of the Memorandum constituted a major message sent to the other new EU member countries also seeking abolition of their visa obligations with the United States. The other Central European countries then followed the example of the Czech Republic, which has confirmed the Czech Republic’s leading role in a coalition of countries seeking visa reciprocity with the USA. 

“In addition to an indisputable practical and political importance of the abolition of the visa obligation in this year ending with figure “8“, this move has a significant symbolic meaning as well,“ adds the Czech Prime Minister. 

Jana Bartošová, press spokesperson of the Government of the Czech Republic