On Monday afternoon, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) welcomed former US President Bill Clinton at Kramář's villa in Prague. Clinton was the keynote speaker at a conference called Our Security, commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Czech Republic's entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization at the Spanish Hall of Prague Castle on Tuesday. He has been in Prague since Saturday evening, and the meeting with Fiala is scheduled for about half an hour. on Monday, at the same time as the White House He declared, Fiala will meet with incumbent President Joe Biden on April 15. The leaders at the meeting, which aims to further strengthen the US-Czech partnership, will reaffirm ongoing support for Ukraine's defense and discuss a number of common issues, according to US presidential spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. Priorities including security issues, economic opportunities and democratic values.
The announcement of Fiala's visit to the White House came exactly five years after the last one arrival Czech Prime Minister at the White House. In 2019, former Prime Minister Andrej Babis was welcomed to Washington by former US President Donald Trump. Fial's government has long sought a new meeting at the White House, but only now has a date been agreed.
Fiala wants to discuss security and the economy with Biden. “I appreciate the invitation to the White House and would like to meet President Biden in Washington. The Czech Republic has high-quality relations with the United States, and our meeting is a great opportunity for their further development. It is symbolic. The meeting takes place during the 25th anniversary of our accession to NATO,” Fiala told CTK. said in a statement issued by government spokeswoman Lucy Jeshatkova.
“A year ago @POTUS Biden A @P_Fiala We met in Warsaw to discuss NATO's key efforts and continued joint support to defend Europe against Russian aggression. They will meet again next month, this time in the Oval Office @White House. The Czech Republic is a… pic.twitter.com/tbnG2PL01o
– US Embassy Prague 🇺🇸🇨🇿 (@USEmbassyPrague)
March 11, 2024
Clinton will speak on Tuesday
Clinton was the President of the United States between 1993 and 2001. He had visited Prague several times in the past, the first time in 1970 as a twenty-four-year-old student. In January 1994, as the 42nd President of the United States, during a meeting with then-Czech President Vaclav Havel, he announced that NATO expansion was not a question of if, but when. In October 2001, Clinton attended the International Conference Forum 2000 in Prague, in November 2005 she attended a meeting of the Madrid Club, and in December 2011 she attended Havel's state funeral.
Clinton has been in Prague since Saturday evening, and on Sunday she attended an informal social event at the jazz club Reduta. Czech President Peter Pavel and his wife, former first lady Dagmar Havlova, and some Czech politicians also attended the event. In Reduta, Clinton recalled her second visit to the Czech Republic in January 1994. Powell will present a state award to Clinton on Tuesday, Castle announced Monday without further details. Clinton has been a recipient of the Order of the White Lion since 1998.
Pavel Clinton will be awarded the Order of Dzi Masaryk, 1st class, according to Miroslav Sklena, former head of the Prague Castle protocol. Although it is a lower honor than the Order of the White Lion, awarding it to the holder of the highest honor does not contradict the law on state honors, Sklenář said on Monday.
Fiala, Pavel, Defense Minister Jana Chernochova (ODS), Foreign Minister John Lipovsky (PIRATES) and former NATO Secretary General George Robertson will also address Tuesday's conference. The Czech Republic joined NATO on March 12, 1999, along with Poland and Hungary.
