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All this month Prague is hosting a fascinating international cultural event - a festival devoted to two of the great writers of the twentieth century, Franz Kafka and Jorge Luis Borges. The festival includes a wide variety of events, from readings and discussions to theatrical performances and art exhibitions. On Thursday a seminar took place at the Czech Culture Ministry, with scholars from around the world talking about aspects of the two writers' work, Kafka having been one of Borges' great inspirations. One participant was Leon Yudkin, an academic

Throughout Europe, the elections to the European Parliament this weekend have failed to arouse enthusiasm or passion. Here in the Czech Republic the elections are a historic moment, coming just six weeks after the country joined the EU. But as Rob Cameron found out, when he took to the streets of Prague, opinion polls predicting a low turn-out and little voter interest, seem to be well-founded:

On Thursday morning the Czech football team left Prague for the European Championships in Portugal, with fans around the country hoping they can win the tournament for the first time since 1976. Among the stars of the Czech team should be striker Milan Baros, who has scored a very impressive 16 goals in 25 international games - not bad for a 22-year-old. Before the Czech team left for Euro 2004, Ian Willoughby spoke to Milan Baros, and began by asking him how the Czech team's preparations for the tournament had gone.

The Czech atomic safety bureau, the SUJB, has said it will file a "diplomatic complaint" against the European Commission in protest of a surprise visit EU inspectors paid to the Temelin nuclear power plant on Wednesday.

The days when Czech-made Skoda cars used to be the butt of jokes are long behind us, and today Skoda is one of the most successful divisions of the Volkswagen Group. This was borne out this week at the Beijing Motor Show, as David Vaughan now reports.

Along with taking in the sunshine of Prague in the summertime, this week is an excellent opportunity to find out more about architecture. The first ever Archifest is taking place featuring the three cities of Prague, Brno and Litomysl. In a programme entitled "architecture: a public matter", Archifest offers numerous opportunities to hear architects themselves talking on-site about their own buildings and buildings they love.

Economic figures for May had been awaited in the Czech Republic with some apprehension. Not only was it the month when the country joined the European Union, but we also saw one of the most significant tax reforms in the last ten years, to bring value added tax rates in line with other EU countries. Given that we saw a rise in VAT for many goods and services - such as cigarettes or eating in restaurants - there were fears of a leap in overall consumer prices. But latest figures suggest that prices remained relatively stable, and that joining the

The Respect festival, which begins in Prague on Thursday, is probably the biggest world music event in the Czech Republic. Deirdre Bourke asked organiser Borek Holecek who were the biggest names on the bill, and how the Respect festival - now in its seventh year - had changed since it first began.

The Czech Republic has been gripped by football fever ahead of Euro 2004, which gets underway in Portugal on Saturday. The only time the Czechs - or rather Czechoslovakia - won the European Championships was in 1976, when Antonin Panenka's famous chipped penalty entered football lore. Czech football fans have high hopes their team will do well in Portugal - but how does the great Antonin Panenka rate their chances?

The Czech papers are full of the story: the shocking news that a two-year-old girl is fighting for her life after being run over by a drunken doctor in the grounds of a Prague hospital.