Press Conferences

4. 10. 20069:45

Press conference of Prime Minister of the CR Mirek Topolánek after the meeting of the government on Wednesday 4th October 2006

Press conference of Prime Minister of the CR Mirek Topolánek after the meeting of the government on Wednesday 4th October 2006

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister:

Ladies and gentlemen, we wish you nice day after the meeting of the government. Let me welcome the Prime Minister, Mirek Topolánek, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Petr Nečas and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alexandr Vondra. First, I give the floor to the Prime Minister, of course.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: Good afternoon. The agenda of the government's meeting was standard today. About those issues, you might be interested in, Alexandr Vodra will inform you. We debated, of course range of standard and technical issues, e.g. approval of our delegation led by the President Václav Klaus for the summit in Riga, range of exemptions, whether they were approved or not, regarding usage of protected landscape areas and a lot of points of similar character; there were about 40 of them. As to more significant issues, which the government debated, it is especially the approval of the Proposal of Deputy Radko Martínek for Promulgation of Act amending Act on Pre-School, Primary, Secondary, Further and Other Education. And as to the personnel changes, it is the appointment of Minister Kolpicová to the Chairman of the Research and Development Council.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you, does the Deputy Prime Minister Petr Nečas want to add anything?

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: I will let the Minister of Foreign Affairs to speak first.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: So, the Minister of Foreign Affairs has the floor.

Alexandr Vondra, Minister of Foreign Affairs: Good afternoon. Perhaps the most interesting material that the government approved today is the proposal for involving of forces and means of the Czech Army in foreign operations in the next year, I mean in 2007. We will pass this proposal to the Chamber of Deputies, as it is done every year. I would like to excuse the Minister of Defence, who is not present, as he has left for a business trip. In principal, the government decided to confirm long-term obligations it has, it means we suppose to be involved in three or four great operations in abroad. One of those missions is in the Balkan, which is realized in the form of our participation in the mission of KFOR in Kosovo and it comprises also our participation in the mission of the EU in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In other words, we expect confirmation of a mandate for participation of our armed forces in these Balkan operations numbered up to 730 persons for the whole year. The second mission that we continue our participation in is the mission of United Nations in the framework of ISAF forces in Afghanistan. There, certain small extension will occur, apart from other things, as a result of negotiations of ministers of defence of NATO in Portoro in Slovenia last week, and the number will be slightly over 200 persons. And finally the third mission, where our participation will continue, is the mission of army policemen numbered up to 100 persons in the framework of multinational measures in Iraq. It will be carried out throughout next year in cooperation with Great Britain. In addition, the government decided to extend this mandate by several persons. We expect to extent this mandate by ten persons at a maximum, however in this phase we expect dispatch of two or three pyrotechnists in the framework of the UN mission, mission UNIFIL that had been started in Lebanon. That was the overall framework of the decision, which the government made today and which will be passed to the Chamber of Deputies and to the Senate for their approval.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you. And now the Deputy Prime Minister Petr Nečas.

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: I just add a short additional remark. The government also obtained certain information in the last week and in the course of the today's debate that concerns the development of the public finances. We must state that the development of the public finances is more serious than it had been shown several months ago. I would like to remind you new, updated figures of the Czech Statistical Office that concern the development of public finances in the last year, when in fact, if I say it in a very diplomatic manner, election-purposed-made figures on the deficit of public finances for the last year at the level of 2,9% of GDP have been proved as not very exact and the real deficit of the last year is 3,6% of GDP. In the connection with this, also certain analyses are being made at the Ministry of Finance with regard to this year's budget. And next week the Ministry of Finance will release information on the development of revenues and expenditures in this year and the situation is likely to be more critical than the previous government claimed to the general public during the pre-election period.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: I thank the Deputy Prime Minister, too, and now I ask for your questions. Kamil Houska, televize Nova.

Kamil Houska, televize Nova: I have two questions. First, I would like to know one thing; Mr. Paroubek repeated again today that your government was to make neither any radical measures nor changes at ministries, I mean in personnel changes. Can you respond to this, are you going to act in conformity with this or are you going to act as a real government? And then, I would like to know what will follow, according to your opinion. Because Mr. Paroubek says nowadays that he has no doubt that it will be him, who will be commissioned to form a new government. He claims that he would be able, unlike you to form a government, which would be grounded on majority. Could you say what is your opinion regarding the further development?

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: I think that neither the Czech political scene nor the Czech general public should be frightened by those exclamations. Of course, we also think that it is necessary to act quickly and we will act quickly in compliance with the Constitution. We are not a government after submission a demission at the moment and therefore I am of the opinion that these exclamations are useless now. Jiří Paroubek headed the government, which had taken absolutely unprecedented measures, not only in the personnel sphere, three months after elections in the time when Jiří Paroubek using obstructions prevented others from forming a new government. I can promise we will avoid such fast changes, but we are the government, unlike the previous one, that has a mandate in spite of the fact that we did not gain confidence. We will submit demission without delay following the agreement with the President and we will certainly, as a political party, start negotiations, which would lead to a stabile political atmosphere, not to the situation that Jiří Paroubek wants to prepare. I do not think that the aim of Jiří Paroubek is to find a way out of crisis, he just wants to command his attempt by certain pressure and I together with majority of Czech citizens do not suppose that his majority-based government supported by communists is something that the Czech general public wishes.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you, further question, please. Kateřina Eliášová, Česká televize.

Kateřina Eliášová, ČT: Good afternoon, I want to ask a question; Mr.Paroubek has said, apart from other things, that the social democracy will want to elect different person to the position of the Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies, so that the other one would not be bound by his promise regarding the third attempt. What do you say to this?

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: With regard to the fact that the promise was the public one, that the other political parties declared that they would remove the chairman if this promise was not fulfilled, I believe those promises that have been made publicly. Any other procedure would be against the political culture, against public principles that are part of parliamentary democracy. Mr. Vlček has promised publicly to resign before the third attempt and the others have declared that they would remove him if he did not do so.

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: A concrete agreement has been concluded by parliamentary parties and these statements of Mr. Paroubek give other evidence of his attitude to agreements, what he things about them, that he do not respect them, etc. I suppose it is further information, further news for the Czech general public regarding Mr. Paroubek.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you, further question, please.

Journalist, Pražský deník: I have two questions. The first one is whether the government will decide somehow regarding American army bases in the Czech Republic. I know that there is no official request, nevertheless, if it is, would it be left for the next government? And whether the government will support the communist's proposal for referendum, or any referendum regarding this issue?

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: I think that it is pre-election storm in a teacup. There is no official requirement here regarding a base or possible radar unit. It is nonsense to deal with it in the situation when no debate has been started at the official level. By the way, we had on the agenda of the meeting also the proposal of deputies Filip, Šedivá, Rujbrová, Jíčinský and others on the Act on Referendum. And this was also the reason, why we dismissed the proposal on referendum on the issue that has not become a reality yet.

Alexandr Vondra, Minister of Foreign Affairs: If I may add information regarding this, I visited United Nations in New York recently and I was speaking to the representatives of the American government and they assured me that this issue will not be a subject of a definite assessment on their side. In other words, we have no reason for a debate on it at the Parliament now or this year. It is just a pre-election show; this proposal, which has appeared now, has no other reason.

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: It is evident that it is a forced pre-election topic of communists. The only one thing that is interesting regarding this issue is to what degree the social democrats will be willing to take part in it; this would be interesting information for the Czech public. As names of submitters indicate, they will, because it was the Minister of Defence, social democrat Tvrdík, who started these negotiations. And I must say that he did it behind the back of the Parliament in September 2002; and intensive negotiations on the expert level were held in times, when Jiří Paroubek was the Prime Minister; I thing that it give evidence on many things.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you, further question. Mr. Houska.

Kamil Houska, televize Nova: May I have a question to complete information? Prime Minister, have you spoken at least over telephone to the President and have you arranged a date of seeing him? Was a date settled of your meeting? Thank you.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: I admit that I did not phone him yesterday because of different time in Asia. He has been informed; of course, Mr. Jakl was present at today's meeting of the government, so we were speaking about it for a minute. I will be phoning to him at the time which will be acceptable, it means after the meeting of the government. I suppose we will meet immediately after his arrival, we will make an agreement on further procedures and I will be preparing submission of my resignation next Wednesday, i.e. at the meeting of the government on Wednesday.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Thank you, further question. Pražský deník once more.

Journalist, Pražský deník: I am sorry; I will formulate my question in a different way. If a request of the American side arrives regarding army base, whether it would be a radar one or not, what will be the position of the government; perhaps you will gain support in the next round. Would it support the referendum? Would the government promote the construction of the base or not?

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: You know, I do not believe in "ifism".

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: Our foreign and security policy is too serious issue for us to operate with such terms like as "what if", "if" and such like. This issue is not topical at present and it is not going to be topical for several months and we cannot see the only one reason for swallowing the pre-election communists´ bait. It is not topical matter at all; it is as topical matter as a debate on a dispatch of a Czech cosmonaut to a Moon mission.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: I can just recommend reading security and strategic materials of governments of Vladimír Špidla, Stanislav Gross and Jiří Paroubek. There is absolutely complete information there.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Further question, please.

Lucie Petrová, ČTK: I would like to ask whether you can specify how much those foreign missions will cost and whether you have a budget prepared. And then, perhaps I have misheard it, whether you approved dispatch of the chemical company to NATO summit. And how much will it cost? Thank you.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: Perhaps I have forgotten to mention it, I did not regard it as very important. It is just standard procedure that the government approves dispatches of our company to NATO summits. The company is, as you have mentioned, for chemical, nuclear and further threats and has about 20 men, if I am not mistaken. It is financed from the budget of the Ministry of Defence. Regarding those costs of our missions in abroad, which are of a long-term character and that are approved for a long-time period, Alexander Vondra will give you information. He has the material at hand, I hope.

Alexandr Vondra, Minister of Foreign Affairs: The calculation of expected costs for the individual operations in the next year, i.e. for those 12 calendar months, is for the mission KFOR about 950 million crowns, for the mission in the framework of the EUFOR in Bosnia and Herzegovina less than 100 million crowns, for the mission in Afghanistan about 330 million crowns, for the mission in Iraq about 255 million crowns and that mission in the framework of the UNIFIL, it is not calculated yet, but I suppose that the amount will be minimal with regard to the expected low number of those pyrotechnists.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: Regarding that mission in Lebanon, it was the previous government and its representatives, who undertook to participate in this mission. The Deputy Minister Bašta was at the meeting in Brussels with Mr. Solana and Mr. Cofi Annan, and he promised this participation as a minimum, so the government did not approve anything special.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Further question, the ČTK once more.

Lucie Petrová, ČTK: May I have one more question to complete information? In the material of the Ministry of Defence also a possibility to involve Czech soldiers in the Response Force of NATO was mentioned. Have you omitted it or have you just forgotten to mention it?

Alexandr Vondra, Minister of Foreign Affairs: No, we did not mention it. It has connection with NATO summit in Latvian Riga, of course, which will be held at the end of November. There it is supposed that member states of NATO will announce involvement of their forces in NATO Response Forces. We expect to prepare 400 persons in the first half of 2007 and up to 35 persons in the second half. Of course, in case of a dispatch of forces, the government will have to take a stand and inform of it the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

Petr Nečas, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs: I would like just to draw your attention to the fact that in case of NATO Response Forces it concerns just potential dispatch, i.e. we are not dispatching our soldiers, they are just prepared, and they are on full alert. They will be dispatched in abroad in case of an operation of NATO. In other words, unlike our missions in the Balkan, Afghanistan and Iraq, where it is already decided on a dispatch, in this case it concerns just possibility of a dispatch.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: Further question, please.

Mirek Topolánek, Prime Minister of the CR: Regarding those questions, so as not you have a feeling that it is something new. I would like to draw attention of the journalist to the fact that we have been involved in those missions for several years.

Radim Ochvat, secretary of the Prime Minister: If there are no other questions, thank you for your attention.