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The eyes of ice hockey fans worldwide are focused on Vienna where the Ice Hockey World Championships are underway. As the NHL season was cancelled in the United States, national teams this year feature their strongest players and true stars. But perhaps the most important and yet the humblest participant in the games is - the puck. It may come as a surprise that at this year's championships as well as in previous years, all the pucks have been produced in the Czech Republic.

On Wednesday morning the Czech President Vaclav Klaus was among a small group of people who gathered at the Russian Orthodox memorial chapel in Prague's Olsany Cemetery. They were there to remember a tragic and long forgotten episode that began just days after the liberation of Prague sixty years ago in May 1945. David Vaughan reports.

While one important music festival - the Prague Spring - begins on Thursday night, another one - Golden Prague - ended on Wednesday. But Golden Prague, although it has a musical theme, is a very different event. It is an international television festival which specializes in TV programs focused on music. On Wednesday night at the Prague Zofin Palace the festival jury announced the winner of the 42nd year of festival.

Bystrice nad Pernstejnem made headlines in February, for being the only town in the Czech Republic where smoking was banned at all places owned by the municipality. But in the four months since the ban was introduced, there has been a surprising development.

On Thursday night Bedrich Smetana's "Ma Vlast" or "My Country" played by the London Symphony Orchestra will open the 60th Prague Spring Festival. The biggest and oldest classical music festival in Czech Lands, the Prague Spring has earned a reputation as one of the best in Europe.

The prospect of going to war with Germany came as no surprise to the Czechoslovak government of the 1930s. Prague had, in fact, been preparing for war seriously for years: by some estimates, over half of all government spending from 1936 to 1938 was for military purposes. Much of this went towards the construction of an elaborate system of bunkers and other defences in the Sudetenland, the border region shared with Germany. The Czech Army today is cutting costs and plans to sell these fortifications to regional governments and private bidders. As

The Czech singer and violinist Iva Bittova, who's often described as one of the most remarkable personalities in Czech music, is gaining more and more fans also among foreign audiences. Two years ago she was among the nominees in the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards and last year she made a number of appearances in the United States. Following another two gigs in Philadelphia and at New York's Carnegie Hall last month, Iva Bittova is now set to release an album in the United States.

The eyes of the world were on Moscow on Monday where 50 world leaders hailed the defeat of Nazi Germany 60 years ago. But the post war division of Europe throws a long shadow and behind the smiles and handshakes, not everyone saw eye to eye on everything. Czech President Vaclav Klaus openly criticized the fact that one of the WWII heroes being awarded for his role in helping to defeat Nazism was the former Polish president Wojciech Jaruzelski.

On Tuesday morning Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek presented the policy agenda of the new government. Or should we say 'new-old' government, as all but four Cabinet ministers from the previous government of Prime Minister Stanislav Gross remain in office. The new governing coalition also consists of the same political parties as before - led by the Social Democrats. What are the priorities of this new-old government? How do they differ from those of the previous government?

Charles Havlat is thought to be the very last American soldier killed in action in the European operations of World War II. The son of Czech immigrants, he took a bullet in the head while on patrol in southern Bohemia; shot by German soldiers who were unaware that a ceasefire had been declared and whose commander later apologised. Brian Kenety reports.