Welcome to Talkback, a forum to voice your opinion on today’s Czech news.

This week’s topic:What should be the focus of the Czech EU presidency?

Is the Czech Republic ready to take over the EU presidency? Opinions vary. Some say it will be a disaster. They say the country is not prepared to deal with the financial crisis, the country is too small and its government in crisis, the Czechs don’t want to ratify the Lisbon Treaty and the Eurosceptic president is boycotting the EU idea. The daily Kurier even wrote that the EU headquarters in Brussels is making emergency plans in case of the Czechs’ failure.

But perhaps it is the nature of the media to present the worst possible scenario. The Czech presidency could be successful for a number of reasons. The Czech economy is not hit by the financial crisis as much as other economies. As a medium-sized country, the Czech Republic can serve as a good mediator in debates (it is hoping to take part in the Middle East peace process and the situation in the Balkans where it has troops). The country’s pro-American policy could also be beneficial for the EU-US dialog now when the US has a new president.

A recent opinion poll showed that the Czechs are becoming more optimistic about the Czech EU presidency. What do you think?

  • What do you think should be the main goal of the Czech presidency?
  • Do you believe the Czechs will fail as EU leaders?
  • Do you think the Lisbon Treaty should be ratified?

    Email us at: talkback@praguemonitor.com.

    Related links

  • Austrian press voices doubts about upcoming Czech EU presidency
  • Tomáš Sedláček: Our time is coming or the myth about Czech smallness
  • Czech Republic launches EU presidency website