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On the eve of its accession to the EU, the Czech Republic said it supported further expansion of the Union to the southeast to include more Balkan countries. At the same time, the Czechs seek to boost business ties with the region. Vladimir Tax reports.

As St. Patrick's Day is now upon us, Irish people all over the world will be raising a glass in honour of their patron saint. Because of historical circumstances, the Irish are well known for having a huge diaspora living in various countries throughout the world. The Czech Republic has also had many Irish émigrés living on its territory down through the years. We take a brief look at these Czech-Irish connections.

In the aftermath of Thursday's Madrid bomb blasts, Czech politicians have been engaged in heated debate over whether or not the country needs a law against terrorism. While the Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla and the Interior Minister Stanislav Gross agree that the threat of international terrorist attack is real, some Czechs fear that an anti-terrorism law would expand the powers of the intelligence services and thereby threaten basic rights and freedoms. Dita Asiedu reports:

The Czech president Vaclav Klaus recently expressed his support for the Czech mission in Afghanistan, soon after polls suggested 75 percent of Czechs were opposed to sending elite soldiers there to help flush out al-Qaeda and the remnants of the Taliban. It is the first time Czech soldiers have gone into combat since World War II.

Almost a year ago seventy-five Cuban journalists and human rights activists were imprisoned by the Castro regime. As an act of solidarity, the Czech People in Need Foundation launched a campaign on Monday in which a symbolic cell was built on Prague's Wencelslas Square - the site of many important events in Czech history, such as the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Under the Stop Repression in Cuba campaign, a volunteer represents each of the 75 imprisoned. An array of dynamic personalities from politicians to artists, some former prisoners under the

March 15th the world celebrates Consumer Rights Day - an annual event highlighting consumer rights and issues both locally and internationally. The theme for 2004 is water, or more precisely the lack of it in many parts of the world. The Consumers' Defence Association of the Czech Republic has joined the event along with over 250 consumer organisations from all over the world.

Five days after the bomb attacks on Madrid, the Czech authorities have announced an apparent u-turn, saying security measures will be increased to deal with the threat of a possible attack on the Czech Republic. The government says while there is no immediate risk, some heightened security measures will after all be put in place.

Although Czechs are generally considered to be a Slavic race, many of them will tell you that they also have some Celtic roots. Indeed, Bohemia is generally considered to be the place from which the Celts migrated across Europe nearly two millennia ago. In many ways, therefore, the Irish musicians arriving in Prague this week for an Irish music festival to celebrate St. Patrick's Day (March 17) could be enjoying a sort of homecoming. It will also give many Czechs an opportunity to reacquaint themselves - at least informally - with some aspects

Prague Fashion Week is now underway. This annual event aims to raise the profile of the Czech fashion industry and showcase talented designers, who will be parading their work at various venues throughout the city.

Thursday's massacre in Madrid has shocked the international community, provoking condemnation from governments around the world and evoking fears that the killings could be just the start of a bigger terrorist campaign. In the Czech Republic government officials have expressed their condolences to the people of Spain and condemned the attack as "a terrible atrocity". Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla said that Thursday's events in the Spanish capital provided further proof of the fact that terrorism cannot be tolerated in any form and that the Czech Republic