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A piece of public art commissioned by the Czech Republic to mark the country’s EU presidency has set tongues wagging in Brussels. ‘Entropa’ sees each of the EU’s 27 member states represented in all of their clichés and stereotypes as part of a larger piece assembled by Czech artist David Černý. Some in Brussels are praising the sculpture as thought-provoking, while others are dismissing it as downright crass.

Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg is to head an EU mission to the Middle East on Sunday, the Foreign Ministry has confirmed. Its task is to work towards a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where Israeli air strikes have killed close to 400 people in an unprecedented offensive against Hamas radicals. Mr. Schwarzenberg has been consulting the matter both with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and EU foreign ministers. The mission is expected to include EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner and the French and Swedish foreign ministers. The delegation will first visit Egypt, then move on to Israel and Palestine. Jordan is to be the last stop on the mission’s journey on Tuesday.

Slovakia became the 16th country to join adopt the single European currency on January 1st, and there were great scenes of celebration across the country. Perhaps surprisingly, however, their old partner the Czech Republic is very far from adopting the euro – the government has yet to adopt a convergence plan. But as Rob Cameron reports, that could soon be about to change.

Hours after the Czech Republic took the helm of the European Union, there were worries in Prague that the country’s Eurosceptic president, Václav Klaus, could launch an embarrassing attack on the EU in his annual New Year’s address. In the end, such fears proved unfounded – the president’s speech was moderate on the EU and, indeed, devoted just as much time to the effects of the global financial crisis.

The Czech presidency of the European Union could not have hoped for a more powerful kick-off. On the very first day at the EU helm, the government of PM Mirek Topolánek had to address two major issues – the escalating conflict in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, and a natural gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine which could affect gas supplies for the European Union.

The prime minister also announced that the Czech Republic would fix its euro adoption target date on November 1 of this year, saying that he had asked the finance minister to submit a euro convergence plan by October. Mr. Topolánek said his faith in the Czech economy had increased as the country had easily complied with the public deficit criterion for euro entry, keeping the gap at 1.2 percent of GDP in 2008, well below the 3.0 percent EU ceiling. The country’s eastern neighbour Slovakia joined the euro zone on January 1st of this year.

The Czech Republic took over the rotating EU presidency from France on Thursday for a six month term that will involve dealing with the global economic crisis and renewed conflict in the Middle East. The motto of the Czech presidency is “Europe without Barriers”, expressing a wish to advance the free movement of people, goods and services around the EU. On January 6th the government will present its priorities which have been dubbed the three Es – economy, energy and “Europe in the World” which entails a three-pronged approach to the EU’s foreign relations. A delegation of the European Commission is expected to visit Prague on January 7th when an official launch of the Czech presidency will take place. On January 8 Prague will host an informal meeting of EU ministers.

On 1 January 2009, almost 20 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the Czech Republic becomes the first former Soviet Bloc country to take over the rotating six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union. Besides the historic symbolism of this event, the upcoming presidency will provide the Czech government with a unique opportunity to influence the EU agenda in the coming months. A successful stint at the helm of Europe could also help the country raise its profile and enhance its standing among its European partners. This is all

On January 1, this coming Thursday, the Czech Republic takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union, becoming only the second ex-communist country after Slovenia to helm the 27-state bloc. However, some fear the Czech EU presidency could be overshadowed by the Czech president, Václav Klaus. Though his position is largely symbolic, Mr Klaus’s fiery anti-EU rhetoric has been receiving a great deal of international attention – and leading many to ask what impact he is likely to have on the Czech presidency.

Czech PM Mirek Topolánek met with the head of the British government Gordon Brown in London on Thursday in the final stop of his tour of European capitals ahead of the Czech presidency of the European Union. After the meeting, Mr Brown said Britain endorsed the Czech EU presidency priorities, and said it was going to be in good hands.