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The month of July, 1997 brought devastating floods to Central Europe. The flooding began in the Czech Republic, then spread to Poland and Germany taking the lives of close to 100 people, destroying towns and infrastructure and leaving thousands of people displaced.

Little Crusader by Václav Kadrnka has become the first Czech competitor in a decade and a half to win the Crystal Globe for best film at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. A host of other prizes were also handed out during Saturday’s gala closing, at which actor Jeremy Renner provided Hollywood glamour and also picked up an award.

Czech MPs are once again seeking to ratify the Paris Climate Agreement in the wake of the G20 meeting in Hamburg. Environment minister Richard Brabec (ANO) says he hopes the process can be completed prior to upcoming parliamentary elections.

The 52nd Karlovy Vary international film festival comes to an end on Saturday night with the traditional glitzy awards ceremony. Alongside the announcement of this year’s prize winners, Hollywood star Jeremy Renner and veteran Czech director Václav Vorlíček will be honoured at the close of the biggest film event in Central and Eastern Europe.

US president Donald Trump made headlines with his Warsaw visit and comments on NATO, Russia, and the world situation. But the purported reason for his Polish stopover was mainly economic, highlighting the benefits that deliveries of US natural gas to countries in Central and South-East Europe. The Czech Republic was part of the Warsaw get together and will have taken notes of Trump’s main points.

Czech ice hockey legend Jaromír Jágr is, to put it bluntly, at the moment out of work. The 45-year-old is a free agent after Florida Panthers finally confirmed speculation that they were not counting on Jágr for the upcoming season. So what are the Czech’s options now?

A major event for lovers of Czechoslovak cinema at this year’s Karlovy Vary film festival has been the world premiere of a digitally restored version of The Shop on Main Street. A portrait of the Aryanisation process in the wartime Slovak state, the 1965 masterpiece earned Ján Kadár and Elmar Klos the country’s first Oscar. On the delegation for the film was Mehelli Modi of Second Run DVD, who previously brought it out on Blu-ray. I asked him what made The Shop on Main Street a great movie.

The Czech Republic is currently chairing the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, one of Europe’s top human rights institutions. During a visit to Strasbourg last week Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek also discussed a case that has raised emotions in the Czech Republic – a not guilty verdict in the case of an attacker who killed a Czech man in London following an altercation outside a fast food outlet. The Czech Republic has been seeking ways to get the case reopened.

The 52nd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival kicked off with a glitzy opening ceremony at the weekend. Speaking on the red carpet, Hollywood star Uma Thurman reflected on some of her best loved work, while Casey Affleck highlighted the significance of such festivals. Ian Willoughby was at the ceremony and sent this report.

Czech businessmen have made an early election call for political parties to clearly state their support for the construction of a high speed rail network in the country in the run up to October elections to the lower house of parliament. They are worried that pledges might otherwise run out of steam.