On the eve of the presidential elections in the Czech Republic. With a margin of less than three percent, the head of the Czech Republic was re-elected Milos Zeman, renowned for his pro-Russian and pro-Chinese sympathies. 51.37% of Czech voters voted for him. The pro-European oriented competitor Zeman Jiri Dragos in the second round was supported by 48.63% of Czechs who have the right to vote.
Turnout during the second round held on 26 and 27 January amounted to 66%.
Political observers note that Zeman was supported mainly in the east of the Czech Republic and in Moravia, while Dragosha was preferred by the voters of the central districts and of Prague. By the way, the same division of electoral sympathies was observed five years ago, when in the Czech Republic for the first time the head of the state was elected by popular vote. Recall that in January 2013, Milos Zeman scored in the second round of 54.8% of the vote, and his rival - the former Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic Karel Schwarzenberg - 45, 19%. Thus, despite the repeated victory of Zeman, we can say that in five years his popularity has somewhat decreased.
"Relations with allies in NATO and the EU will remain the same" "In the Czech foreign policy, where the president has limited influence, nothing will change. He will continue to make some pro-Russian and pro-Chinese statements, although the foreign policy line is determined by the government, "recalls Ondrej Soukup.
At the same time, Ondrej Soukup believes that foreign policy will most likely continue the pragmatic course. "And if trade relations with Russia make up about 2% of foreign trade turnover, then there is no reason to pursue a more pro-Russian policy. Accordingly, it seems to me that relations with allies within the framework of NATO and the European Union will remain, in principle, the same, "- sums up the Czech journalist.
"T. then the Czechs and Slovaks simply accepted what had come from outside. And now, 28 years later, there was an opportunity to show - is Czech society really ready to follow the path of liberal, parliamentary democracy? And it turned out that no, "- said Alexander Mitrofanov.
He notes one political feature of Milos Zeman: "He believes that the winner takes all. And even if he won with a difference in one vote, he would behave like a full-fledged boss of this country. He is often on the verge of compliance with the constitution, and sometimes crosses this line, but, as we see, the majority of voters do not attach importance to this. The Zeman electorate is convinced that the president elected by them will protect them. This sounds rather comical, since Zeman's health is such that he can not protect anyone ".
Seventy-three-year-old Czech president suffers from leg disease, which makes it difficult to move, in addition, during the first period of his presidency, the Czech press repeatedly wrote about Zeman's addiction to smoking and drinking alcohol.
As for the foreign policy views of the re-elected master of the Prague Castle (a fortress on the top of Petrshinsky Hill, where the residence of the head of the republic is located), he repeatedly opposed Ukraine's admission to NATO and for granting visa-free entry to the EU citizens of Russia, was the only EU leader who was present on May 9 2017 at a military parade in Moscow, and shortly before the election, he visited Russia with a representative delegation of Czech businessmen.
Milos Zeman also spoke in favor of lifting economic sanctions imposed on Russia after the annexation of Crimea and Moscow's support for the armed separatists in Ukraine. At the same time, the Czech Republic invariably votes together with other EU countries for the extension of sanctions for the next six months, despite the Kremlin's food counter-measures designed to hit the interests of producers from the European Union.
According to the Russian journalist Maria Stroyeva, who lives in the Czech Republic, making statements in support of Russia, Zeman "earns points in the Kremlin", without risking anything at all. "Yes, in Russia these statements are perceived" with a bang "and then there are newspaper headlines screaming that" tomorrow the Czech Republic will abolish sanctions ". At the same time, for some reason, it does not occur to anyone that they are dealing with the president of a parliamentary republic, and that Zeman is very limited in the possibilities within the Czech Republic, "said Maria Stroeva.
At the same time, according to Stroyeva, the re-elected president is not going to change anything with regard to economic sanctions against Russia. "He only says:" It would be nice to cancel ... ". And further, as during the televised debate with Dragosh, he will talk about the potential advantages of the Russian market for the sale of goods. And this will be agreed with him by any major Western entrepreneur. Yes, Russia is a huge potential market, but the key word is just "potential". And when this potential is realized, and whether this happens in principle - no one knows, "continues Maria Stroeva. And adds that the foreign policy of Milos Zeman is that "to run along the tip of the knife between his friends in Moscow and in Brussels".
As for the losses from Russian counter-forces, the expert draws attention to the fact that in the Czech economy, only 2%. "Of course, in the Czech Republic there were companies and companies that focused exclusively on the Russian market and actively worked with it. Of course, they did not like the sanctions, to put it mildly,. And they had to do a lot of work, that they were going to redevelop themselves and find new markets. It was not easy, but there were no bankruptcies, no one committed suicide. this was not a catastrophe, as, probably, I would like to present this picture in Russia. Although, of course, for such a small country as the Czech Republic, any such changes are noticeable, "states Stroev.
Describing the political situation, she emphasizes that Milos Zeman's second presidential term is the last for him. "The Czech Republic is not Russia, after all. It must be clearly remembered, "- repeats Maria Stroev. Therefore, despite the obvious economic growth in the country, the budget surplus, the growth of minimum wages, the increase in the export of Czech goods abroad and the strengthening of the national currency, one can not say that this happens "thanks" to the president. "The Czech Republic is a parliamentary republic. The president's opportunities here are incommensurable with the capabilities of the leader of the non-parliamentary republic, not to mention the absolute monarchy. And this must be clearly understood when we give a political assessment of what happened. Of course, the president of the Czech Republic has representative functions, but his power is strictly regulated and for its framework the current president, he again elected, did not go out and will not come out, "said Maria Stroeva.
And, returning to the results of the elections, sums up: "As we see, the country has shared, practically, fifty-fifty. Of course, older people, the inhabitants of villages and small towns, and also in Moravia, in general, gave their votes to Zeman. And in the north and north-west for him voted less. This is a historically formed division of electoral preferences, which was preserved during this campaign ".
Source: Voice of America.