Stubborn Klaus

Czech President Vaclav Klaus has spoken out against over-ambitious goals for the Czech EU presidency scheduled for the first half of 2009. The parliament in Prague, he says, should not focus exclusively on the ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon as long as the Irish say no to it. The left-wing newspaper Právo suspects Klaus's remarks are motivated by personal interests: "It would be helpful if Prague made an effort to persuade the Irish [to ratify the treaty], particularly now that the British Conservatives and the last Polish hussar, President Kaczynski, have given up their battle against Lisbon. ... Klaus's talk of national interests and preserving national sovereignty conceals an unspoken message: it is better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. This is the secret behind his opposition to integration."

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