Klaus admits his return to politics

Prague, March 6 (CTK) - Outgoing Czech President Vaclav Klaus, whose mandate expires on Thursday, admitted that he might return to politics if attacks on him continued, in an interview for public Czech Television (CT) Wednesday.

He particularly mentioned the high treason charge of him that the left-dominated Senate initiated.

Klaus called the Senate's step a political fight of a group of senators with him.

"I think the whole battle some senators are waging with me has the only aim to drag me into politics at any cost and make me defeat them in some of next elections again. So if they want this, let them continue," Klaus said, indicating that he might respond to the call.

The Senate decided to file a high treason complaint against Klaus with the Constitutional Court (US) over his New Year amnesty but also over his delay in signing the Lisbon Treaty and the addendum to the European Social Charter and other issues.

Klaus also said he cannot return to purely academic activities, to pure research. He will be involved in the Vaclav Klaus Institute think tank.

In the interview, Klaus mentioned his successes and failures during his 23-year political career.

He considers the economic transformation towards the market economy one of the successes, along with the creation of the standard system of political parties and a peaceful division of Czechoslovakia in 1992.

"I do not think that everything has been a success... but speaking about systemic things, I am not convinced that something has happened in a fatally wrong way," Klaus added.

Klaus occupied the post of Czech prime minister (in office 1992-97). Then he was chairman of the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of parliament, in 1998-2002. In 2003, Klaus was elected Czech president and he defended the post in 2008.

His second and last possible term in office expires on March 7 and his successor Milos Zeman will be inaugurated a day later.