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In recent years thousands of Czech Romanies have left this country to seek asylum abroad, with many of them attempting to start a new life in Great Britain. Four years ago, Czech Romany Ladislav Balaz set up a Roma community centre in the London suburb of Tottenham in order to help his people communicate with the British authorities. I recently spoke to Mr Balaz, who left for the UK after a Roma friend of his was killed in the north Moravian town of Orlova, and began by asking him what services the centre provided to Romanies.

The presence of Czech troops in the Middle East is an issue which people and politicians alike tend to disagree over. Should the anti-chemical unit go to Iraq? Should the Czech Republic support the United States? These are some of the questions that Czechs are asking themselves since the onset of war. The fact of the matter is that Czechs, along with the Slovaks, do have troops in Kuwait. Though it may be uncertain what Czechs think about their presence in the Middle East it is however clear what the presence and cooperation of the Czech-Slovak

Just a few days ago the new Czech president Vaclav Klaus tried to appease Germans and Austrians in the European parliament by condemning the atrocities of World War Two including the subsequent expulsion of ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia. This after years of disputes between Sudeten German associations and Czech representatives over the validity of the so-called Benes decrees which sanctioned the expulsions, and possible compensation for confiscated property. Although European politicians are satisfied and say Mr Klaus brought the dispute to

With all eyes on the war in Iraq and growing apprehensions over the number of casualties on both sides, the Czech Republic is resolute on one thing: to provide humanitarian aide the length of the conflict and beyond. The country has also pledged its elite nuclear, biological, and chemical unit to come to the US-led coalition's assistance if Saddam Hussein were to resort to weapons of mass destruction. Though in their hearts many Czechs are against the war overall there is no question over their NBC troops' necessity in the Gulf, and most applaud

At a time when most Czechs are anxiously surveying the war in Iraq, when security has been heightened at home because of potential terrorist attacks, the national Security Information Service is looking for an unknown assailant in eastern Moravia, responsible for repeated bomb threats throughout the month of March. Two weeks ago police uncovered the assailant's handiwork: an expertly placed home-made bomb planted under a local railway bridge - confirmation the threat was serious. The anonymous caller then demanded officials place 10 million crowns

As the war in Iraq continues there is the increasing threat of chemical or biological weapons being used in the conflict. Czech troops are under continuing pressure to act if such event would occur. Martin Hrobsky spoke to Czech Radio's correspondent in Kuwait, Vit Pohanka. He began by asking him what happens in the event of an attack and what life is like for the Czech anti-chemical troops stationed in Kuwait.

Avin Taha is a confident, poised and articulate young graduate from the Masaryk University in the Czech second city of Brno, where she studied sociology and journalism. She is half Czech and half Iraqi Kurd -her Czech mother is a music teacher, her father an Iraqi engineer who studied in the 1970s in Prague. Most of Avin's early childhood was spent in Baghdad, which she remembers with nostalgia and where she still has many relatives. For people like Avin Taha the current war is a particularly painful time.

Ask Czechs what is unique about their behaviour, many will admit a lack of directness. For reasons why, you do not have to look far. Forty years of Communist rule and the fear of being watched whenever and wherever taught many Czechs to guard their behaviour and rarely trust their neighbours - for good reason. An unofficial list compiled by former dissident Petr Cibulka in the early 1990's revealed 200,000 names of people believed to have spied on their friends, neighbours, and even family. After years of speculation over the list's reliability

Among the numerous exhibitions currently taking place in Prague's many galleries and museums is one show which offers art-lovers an unusual opportunity to see at first-hand the art of Canada's Inuit people. Entitled Asingit, meaning Different Ones, the exhibition is being held at the renowned Naprstek Museum of Ethnic Cultures.

The affects of the war in Iraq on the Czech Republic could be widespread across both the political and economic spectrums. By trying to appease both those who support the war and those who are strictly against it the Czech Republic is hoping to minimise the damage to its image on the international stage.