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Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka has affirmed his county’s support for the EU integration project as European leaders met in Rome over the weekend marking the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome.

The Czech Republic will be emphasizing unity and security at the EU’s informal summit in Rome on Saturday. Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said ahead of the summit that EU cooperation in matters of security and EU border protection was a crucial issue. Europe must be capable of taking coordinated action in the fight against terrorism, illegal migration and organized crime, Sobotka told journalists. He also stressed the need to push ahead with convergence and reduce disparities among EU members and for the EU to remain open to newcomers. The Czech prime minister said he was satisfied with the Czech and Visegrad input into the draft declaration which EU members are expected to sign at the summit. He added however that the Czech Republic was extremely cautious regarding the possibility of a multi-speed EU, saying that Prague feared that the countries left in the slow-lane would be left out of important decision-making.

EU leaders meet in Rome on Saturday to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding Rome treaty and look forward to the future. That’s the theory, but the Czech Republic and other Central European countries have already put down warning markers over what they regard as moves towards a more multi-speed Europe.

The government on Wednesday agreed prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka’s mandate for the informal EU summit taking place in Rome at the weekend. The two main themes for the Czech premier will be unity and security, according to the government programme. The Rome meeting is meant to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding treaty of what was to develop into the EU. But the main focus will probably be on discussions over the future direction of the EU. Prague, along with its Visegrad regional block partners, is opposing the further development of what could be a multi-speed EU.

An interview in which Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek spoke about the need for EU member states to be allowed to regulate the movement of the workforce in order to prevent social problems has kicked up a storm of controversy. The story was picked up by the foreign press and the opposition is accusing minister Zaorálek of damaging Czech interests in the EU.

Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek has warned that the European Union needs to learn from Brexit and needs to listen more to its citizens or risk falling apart. He made the statement in an interview for the financial daily Hospodářské noviny published on Monday. In the interview, Mr Zaorálek was also quoted by the paper as saying the EU needed to control the movement of labour in the 27-member bloc. But on Monday, Mr Zaorálek issued a response saying that his words had been taken out of context by the daily, affirming that he was a supporter of the freedom of movement of labour in the EU. Opposition party TOP 09 had taken issue with the interview as published saying that restrictions on the movement of labour would only hurt the Czech economy.

Proposals for stricter European gun rules achieved almost the impossible by uniting Czech MEPs and creating a broad front of domestic opposition to the plans. While backers of the changes maintain they are clamping down on terrorism, opponents say the new rules are wide of the mark and merely make life difficult for legitimate and licensed gun holders. And Czech lawmakers have pledged to fight on.

Czech politicians have criticised European guidelines tightening controls on gun ownership. MEP’s on Tuesday voted for the move, which comes in response to the Paris attacks in 2015, and sees greater restrictions on so-called “blank-firing” weapons. Roman Váňa of the lower house’s security committee said the Ministry of the Interior was considering taking legal action against the directives. Meanwhile, the minister of defence, Martin Stropnický, said his ministry would start preparing a new bill that would allow gun owners to retain some weapons. He also welcomed the fact that some elements of the guidelines had been toned down in comparison with draft versions.

During an informal summit in Versailles on Monday the leaders of France, Germany, Italy and Spain expressed support for a multi-speed Europe which would allow some EU member states to press ahead with integration faster than others. Those in the “slow lane” would restrict themselves to participation in the single market and co-operation on foreign and security policy. I spoke to Vít Beneš from the Institute for International Relations about what a two-tier Europe would mean.

Czech Euro MPs and the Czech government have agreed to cooperate in negotiations on an amendment to the EU firearms directive. The news was confirmed on Friday evening by Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka. The amendment is looking to tighten gun restrictions which are opposed by the Czech interior minister, Milan Chovanec. By contrast, Minister Chovanec is pushing for changes at home which would allow Czechs to draw and use firearms in the event of a terrorist attack. The prime minister described the debat as complex; the amendment is to be debated in March. Mr Sobotka indicated Czech Euro MPs would propose changes to the EU proposal.