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Silesians. They have their own language, a long history and they live in one of the richest regions of Poland. Today their calls for autonomy are echoing louder and louder. When they enjoyed unexpected success in regional elections last autumn for the first time in twenty years, Warsaw woke up to a problem in its territories along the Czech border. Katowice (Poland) A march organised by Silesian autonomists At the congress of the Movement for Silesian Autonomy, in Katowice, a triumphal mood reigns. Delegates, some hundred and thirty of them who arrived in early March, some in traditional Silesian garb,...

Václav Klaus has long been a critic of the European Union, but never before has he openly called for his country to leave it. As prime minister he negotiated the terms of Czech EU membership, and was president when the country joined on May 1st, 2004. But he’s been a constant critic of the EU, accusing it of unacceptable meddling in its members’ sovereign affairs and comparing its economic policies to communism. His suggestion that the Czech Republic should now seek an exit from the EU was immediately welcomed by those on the euroskeptic right, including Petr Mach, head of...

European banks would leave London “in very short order” if Britain voted to exit the European Union, a senior Goldman Sachs executive said in a newspaper interview published on Monday. Michael Sherwood, a vice-chairman at the bank, said the prospect of a British withdrawal was a real worry given Prime Minister David Cameron’s plans to hold a referendum on the subject if re-elected in 2015. … Goldman’s Sherwood predicted European banks would quickly relocate if Britain did sever its EU ties. “Forget what we would do. Every European firm would be gone in very short order,” he was quoted as...

The Czech parliament voted on Tuesday to dissolve itself, triggering an early election that could hand the Communist Party a share in power for the first time since a bloodless revolution ended the party’s totalitarian rule two decades ago. Opinion polls show that the center-left Social Democrats will be the biggest party, but they will need support from other groups to govern and the leader of the party said he would talk to the Communists about forming a partnership. In the eyes of many people in the country of 10 million people, the Communists are linked to 41 years of...

The European Union failed on Thursday to blacklist Hezbollah as a terrorist group in fear that such a move would lead to instability in Lebanon and the Middle East. Britain’s drive to reach a unanimous decision to blacklist Lebanon's powerful Shiite group has failed to persuade the 27-nation bloc, diplomatic sources said. Diplomats told Reuters that the discussions were not over, but Britain may escalate the issue to a higher level, possibly to a July meeting of foreign ministers. “There was no agreement and the understanding was the issue will be discussed further, but not in this (group),” a diplomat...

A small group of EU countries has again blocked Britain’s bid to blacklist Lebanese group Hezbollah. Diplomatic sources said Austria and the Czech republic led opposition at a meeting of EU countries’ counterterrorism specialists in Brussels on Wednesday (19 June). Ireland, Italy and Poland also voiced concerns. Objections center around shaky evidence that Hezbollah bombed a bus containing Jewish tourists in Bulgaria last year. …

The potential for social unrest in European Union countries is higher than anywhere else in the world and the already yawning gaps between rich and poor, a major trigger, are likely to widen globally, the International Labour Organisation said on Monday. Those most vulnerable, the report said, were Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain. However the risk of social unrest had declined in Belgium, Germany, Finland, Slovakia and Sweden since 2010. Overall, the risk of unrest in the EU "is likely to be due to the policy responses to the ongoing sovereign debt crisis and their impact...

Czech archaeologists excavate Ancient Greek town flattened by Bohemian Celts [20-09-2005] By Pavla Horakova Listen 16kb/s ~ 32kb/s For twelve years, Czech archaeologists have been helping their Bulgarian colleagues in the excavations of an Ancient Greek market town in central Bulgaria. The twelve years of work has yielded valuable results, including a hoard of coins, and discovered a surprising connection between the ancient town and the Czech Lands. PistirosThe river port of Pistiros was founded in the 5th century BC by a local Thracian ruler. From the excavations we know that wine from Greece was imported to the town in...

The gilded lifestyle of MEPs has been compared to the uncontrolled excesses of ancient Rome after research showed their perks have not been dented despite biting austerity measures. From Italian MEPs who enjoy free haircuts to Maltese ones who get 52 free gallons of petrol a month, the perks—and expenses—continue unabated for the representatives of European Union nations. MEPs from the 27 EU nations are paid salaries of £137 million ($207 million) a year, according to research by German pricing watchdog Preisvergleich.de, and some earn 740 percent more than the average citizen. …

The European Union is to ban olive oil jugs and dipping bowls from restaurant tables in a move described by one of Britain’s top cooks as authoritarian and damaging to artisan food makers. The small glass jugs filled with green- or gold-colored extra virgin olive oil are familiar and traditional for restaurant goers across Europe, but they will be banned from 1 January 2014 after a decision taken in an obscure Brussels committee earlier this week. From next year, olive oil “presented at a restaurant table” must be in prepackaged factory bottles with a tamper-proof dispensing nozzle and labeling in...

On April 8, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi headlined a Boston conference on ''media reform.'' She was joined by four other congressmen, a senator, two FCC commissioners, a Nobel laureate and numerous liberal journalists. The 2,500-person event was sponsored by a group called Free Press, one of more than 180 different media-related organizations that receives money from liberal billionaire George Soros. Soros, who first made a name for himself in investing and currency trading, now makes his name in politics and policy. Since the 2004 election, the controversial financier has used his influence and billions to push a laundry list...

Amid growing calls from Tory MPs for David Cameron to respond to the Ukip threat by bringing forward legislation on an EU referendum, Farage warned that his party would not go away even if No 10 "starts singing the same song". William Hague, who famously suffered a major defeat in the 2001 election after tacking to the right, called for a cautious response to Ukip as he warned of the dangers of "quick fixes". Philip Hammond, the defence secretary, said many Ukip voters were "frustrated Conservatives". As the Tories work out their response to Ukip, which won nearly a quarter...

An explosion in central Prague on Monday, probably caused by gas, injured as many as 40 people, officials said, and neighboring buildings - including the National Theatre - had to be evacuated. The explosion, in a building facing the Vltava river just a few dozen meters (yards) from the 19th-century theatre, was heard as far away as Prague Castle about a mile away. A police spokesman said the blast was probably caused by gas and that there had been about 15 people in the building, which included an office of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and an art gallery.

For the first time in almost a decade, the blue-and-gold European Union flag is flying above Prague Castle. But there’s already a movement to take it down. The new president, Milos Zeman, says the flag is a long overdue sign that the country is moving toward the European mainstream, following the staunchly anti-EU tenure of his predecessor Vaclav Klaus—who banned the banner from the castle that houses the presidential offices. Euro-skepticism remains rife, however, and one prominent member of the anti-EU camp even likened Zeman to a puppet leader installed by the Nazis. …

Controversy has erupted over next Tuesday's European Parliament resolution "on eliminating gender stereotypes in the EU", meant to mark international women's day, after libertarian Swedish MEPs from the Pirate Party spotted the call for a ban in the small print. While not legally binding, the vote could be the first step towards European legislation as the EU's assembly increasingly flexes its political muscle within Europe's institutions.

The Daily Telegraph has seen confidential spending proposals and internal documents planning an unprecedented propaganda blitz ahead of and during European elections in June 2014. Key to a new strategy will be “public opinion monitoring tools” to “identify at an early stage whether debates of political nature among followers in social media and blogs have the potential to attract media and citizens’ interest”. Spending on “qualitative media analysis” is to be increased by £1.7 million ($2.7 million), and while most of the money is to be found in existing budgets, an additional £787,000 ($1.24 million) will be need to be...

RPT-Swiss opt for Saab's Gripen fighter jets - paper (Repeats to additional subscribers) ZURICH Nov 30 (Reuters) - Switzerland has chosen to replace its fighter jet fleet with Swedish defence and aerospace group Saab's JAS-39 Gripen, Swiss newspaper Tagesanzeiger reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources close to the government. Neutral Switzerland has wrangled for the past three years over whether to replace its ageing Northrop F-5E/F Tiger fighters, purchased in 1976 and 1981, with up to 33 new aircraft. Saab shares were up 8.5 percent to 117.10 Swedish crowns by 1345 GMT after the newspaper report. The newspaper said the...

US concerned over Norway's $8bn fighter selection programme, Saab's Gripen may be favoured news 15 January 2008 Helsinki: Almost immediately after the Eurofighter consortium distanced itself from the Norwegian fighter replacement programme in December last year, citing alterations in the bidding process as favouring the US JSF-35 programme, it is now the turn of the US to cry foul saying that the process may actually be skewed in favour of the Swedish JAS-39 Gripen-N programme. Post-withdrawal of the Eurofighter Typhoon fighter from the competition, the Lockheed Martin JSF-35 and the Saab JAS-39 Gripen-N fighters are now in contention for the...

Gripen operational cost lowest of all western fighters: Jane’s The study conducted by IHS Jane's Aerospace and Defense Consulting, compared the operational costs of the Gripen, Lockheed Martin F-16, Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, Dassault’s Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-35 aircraft. The operational cost of the Swedish Saab Gripen aircraft is the lowest among a flightline of modern fighters, confirmed a White Paper submitted by the respected international defense publishing group IHS Jane’s, in response to a study commissioned by Saab. The paper says that in terms of ‘fuel used, pre-flight preparation and repair, and scheduled airfield-level maintenance together with...

Saab Receives FMV Funding for JAS-39 Gripen Upgrades Posted 10-Jul-2006 10:17 Saab received a SEK 1 billion ($130 million equivalent) order from the Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV), covering continued development of the JAS-39 Gripen fighter. The order reportedly covers various software upgrades, as well as other development activities supporting the long term development of the Gripen system. Work will be performed at Saab Aerosystems and Saab Aerotech in Linkoping, Sweden as well as at Saab Avitronics in Jarfalla and Kista, Sweden. See release. The JAS-39 Gripen is a 4th generation lightweight fighter in service since 1993, and adopted by...