Rarely has the European public ever been quite this uncertain as to whether a Member State can handle the challenges connected with the presidency of the Council of the European Union. Most of the concern is over whether controversial Czech President Václav Klaus may attempt some sort of provocation. The eurosceptic leader became famous for his thesis that climate change caused by human beings simply does not exist; he has also said he opposes furthering the integration of the European Union. However, his role in Czech foreign policy (and now in European foreign policy) should not be overestimated. He might be glad the international media paid so much attention to him prior to the start of the Czech EU Presidency, but of course as far as establishing priorities and creating a political agenda are concerned, the Czech president does not have any great influence. Klaus will certainly try to create confusion in the coming months: In the year 2008 he was elected to his second and last term in office, and he therefore does not have to worry that his willful remarks might have political consequences either at home or abroad. It remains startling that when the president does go abroad, he does not represent the positions of the Czech government, but rather his own personal opinions. The Czech Constitution never envisioned such a dilemma; according to that document the government, not the president, determines foreign policy. Klaus also does not represent the majority of Czech citizens when he says the EU represents a threat to national sovereignty. Public opinion polls have shown that most people in the country are pro-European and primarily see the benefits of membership in the European Union.
The presidency during a time of crisis
Determining the direction of policy during the Czech EU Presidency is first and foremost the task of Czech PM Mirek Topolánek (ODS), Deputy PM for European Affairs Alexandr Vondra (ODS) and Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg (unaffiliated with any political party and appointed by the Czech Green Party).
The preparation for any EU presidency is a long, drawn-out process. It was particularly complicated for the Czech government. In June 2009 there will be elections to the European Parliament, and the mandate of the European Commission led by José Manuel Barroso will end during the course of the presidency. This means the European Parliament will approve relatively few pieces of legislation and the Commission will present relatively few proposals for important political initiatives. The Czech government is not in an enviable position with regard to the domestic political situation either: The governing coalition composed of the ODS (Civic Democrats), KDU-ČSL (Christian Democrats) and SZ (Green Party) is very unstable. In mid-January, Topolánek announced personnel changes in the cabinet which had been long awaited, and four ministers were replaced on 23 January. Moreover, the opposition has signaled its unwillingness to put domestic political conflicts on the back burner during the presidency. Given the presidency’s agenda, Prague must also be able to respond quickly to unexpected events. Schwarzenberg, for example, took on the role of mediator after the escalation of the crisis in the Gaza Strip in the Middle East. At the same time, great flexibility was also required of the Czech cabinet over the Russian-Ukrainian natural gas dispute.
Twenty years after the fall of the Iron Curtain
On 6 January the three priorities of the Czech EU Presidency were officially announced: Economy, Energy and European Union in the World. The motto of the presidency is “Europe without Barriers”, and the Czech government wants to advocate for a Europe without economic or cultural obstacles. In historical terms, the government will be referring to two milestones in the history of the European unification process, as the Czech Republic is taking up the EU presidency 20 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain and five years after the enlargement of the EU to the east.
Negotiations on the future of the Lisbon Treaty are at the top of the presidency’s agenda. The treaty has not yet been ratified in the Czech Republic itself. Another key topic in the context of EU enlargement is policy towards the countries of the Western Balkans. Among the main points of foreign policy will be the Eastern dimension of the European Neighborhood Policy, EU-Russia relations after the Georgian-Russian conflict, transatlantic relations in connection with the new US administration, and EU policy vis-à-vis the Middle East. The effects of the global financial crisis will also be sig-nificant. Prior to the global climate summit in 2009 in Copenhagen, Czech Environ-ment Minister Martin Bursík (SZ) will play a key role in negotiating the agreements that will succeed the Kyoto Protocol. Given these international crises and conflicts, the unstable governing coalition, and the EP elections, the Czech EU Presidency’s working program is very ambitious.
Greater advocacy of the interests of Central and Eastern Europeans
The Czech EU Presidency presents not only challenges, but also opportunities for the country to become more visible within the EU framework and establish a particularly Czech political emphasis. Given the fact that the Czech Republic is a small Member State and is taking up the presidency for the first time, the country naturally has a more limited capacity than the larger, more experienced Member States. However, even a small Central European country such as the Czech Republic now has the opportunity to preside over important steps at a time of international crisis and conflict. For example, Topolánek demonstrated his negotiation skills in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian natural gas dispute, interpreting to the rest of the EU the concerns of the Central European and Eastern European Member States, which were especially negatively impacted by the interruption of Russian supplies. The topic of energy security is very current in Central and Eastern Europe because dependency on energy imports from Russia is very high. Bulgaria and Slovakia, for example, are almost 100 % dependent on imported Russian natural gas. Diversifying energy imports and reducing the energy consumed by the economic system are considered the main energy sector challenges for the Czech government. A unified EU energy market would facilitate solidarity between the Member States during times of crisis.
Arts and politics: “Entropa”
In mid-January the presentation of an artwork entitled “Entropa” by the Czech artist David Černý caused quite a furor. The installation, subtitled “Stereotypes are Barriers to be Demolished” was commissioned by the Czech government and will be on display until the end of June in the Brussels headquarters of the Council of the Euro-pean Union. It is comprised of 27 sections, each portraying a different country: Spain is a concrete desert, Belgium is a box of pralines, Bulgaria is a collection of “Turkish toilets”, the Czech Republic is an electric sign displaying the controversial remarks of Czech President Václav Klaus, the Netherlands is a flooded territory with several minarets sticking up above the water, Italy is a football pitch with masturbating football players, Poland is a potato field in which priests raise a rainbow flag (the symbol of the gay rights movement), Austria a green meadow with four nuclear power plant cooling towers, and Germany a network of highways reminiscent of a swastika (here the artist claims the association was unintentional and has distanced himself from this interpretation).
David Černý is famous for his provocative works, so it was to be expected that the commissioned work would prompt grievances. The Czech government agreed with the artist that the work would be a collaboration by 27 artists, one from each Member State. However, David Černý invented 26 biographies of fictitious artists and only announced shortly before the work was unveiled that he and his installation team were the sole authors. When presenting the artwork, Vondra emphasized that it did not reflect the Czech government’s view of the European Union or any of the Member States and apologized for the irritation caused by the work before it had even been unveiled. “Entropa”, it is said, is an artwork, nothing more and nothing less, and freedom of opinion is a basic value of democratic societies. The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry demanded the depiction of Bulgaria be removed from the artwork, and in response that section of the installation has been covered in black fabric. Černý explained that his intention was not to offend anyone. “We wanted to find out whether Europe is able to laugh at itself,” the artist said in an open letter.
Is Europe in harmony?
On 7 January the European Commission visited Prague on the occasion of the initiation of the Czech EU Presidency. That same evening the presidency was officially opened at the National Theatre. The title of the gala concert has two meanings: “We will sweeten up Europe” or “We will harmonize Europe”. Topolánek has emphasized that due to its historical experience, the Czech Republic has learned how to listen and solve problems constructively. We can only hope for Europe that the flavor of the slogan from the opening gala evening will not have turned sour by the end of June 2009.