Russian press: Will new Czech head be pro-Russian or Kremlin's critic?

Moscow, Jan 14 (CTK) - A politician suspected of pro-Russian stances and an aristocratic critic of the Kremlin will fight for the post of Czech president, Russian dailies write yesterday about the duel between Milos Zeman and Karel Schwarzenberg.

"Czechs will choose between experience and antiquity," the Kommersant daily says.

It writes that Zeman is accused of links to Russian businesses by his opponents, while Schwarzenberg is known as a harsh critic of the Kremlin.

The fight for president will be interesting also because both candidates are supported by different social classes and different regions: Zeman is more popular in the eastern part of the Czech Republic and in the rather poor southern areas, while Schwarzenberg will be supported mainly by voters from the cities and from the relatively rich Prague and the surrounding area, Kommersant writes.

It says the biggest surprise of the Czech election was that unaffiliated Jan Fischer who was considered one of the two clear favourites along with Zeman did not advance from the first round this weekend.

The paper says Fischer probably failed due to his political inexperience and bad performance in television discussions before the election.

Zeman and Schwarzenberg are very experienced politicians who succeeded in mobilising their voters, Kommersant writes.

The time when Zeman was Czech prime minister (1998-2002) is assessed very ambiguously, the paper notes, referring to economic growth but also backstage bargaining, flourishing corruption and ties to Russian capital.

Kommersant says Zeman has clashed with the Social Democrat (CSSD) leadership, he presents himself as a moderate left-winger and he criticises the present centre-right government for insensitive reforms. Zeman is known for his love of cigarettes and liquor, his rude jokes and animosity to journalists, the paper adds.

Schwarzenberg is a 75-year-old offshoot of an old Austrian aristocratic family who is known for pro-European stances, sharp criticism of authoritarian rule and who is popular among the young generation of Czechs, Kommersant writes.

Moskovskyi komsomolets daily says it is a surprise that a 75-year-old aristocrat advanced to the second round of the presidential election.

The paper recalls that Czechs based in Moscow preferred Schwarzenberg, while in St. Petersburg the election was won by Zeman.

Support to Schwarzenberg is a nostalgia for the good old times of the rule of an Austrian emperor, Moskovskyi komsomolets writes.

Though the president does not influence Czech foreign policy, foreign affairs will be one of the major issues before the second round due on January 25-26, the paper says.

Both candidates have similar views of the European Union, but their stances on Russia at markedly different, Moskovskyi komsomolets writes.

Zeman is seen as a pro-Russian oriented candidate with contacts with Russian business, Schwarzenberg is known by his disapproving position on the Russian regime, the paper says.