The presidency of the government of the Czech Republic has been held since 1998 by Prime Minister Milos Zeman, of the moderate left party.
Milos Zeman is a politician with all the necessary qualities: charismatic with the people, possessing a well-honed wit and excellent communication skills. Czech journalists are well aware of Mr. Zeman's general dislike for the media, but with us—perhaps because we weren't Czech or to mask his animosity toward journalists—he treated us with great interest and diligence, displaying a profound and intelligent sense of humor.
Knowing Spain and the Spanish people, Prime Minister Zeman and his Government are writing the current history of one of the countries with the most tradition and possibly one of the most beautiful in the world.
What would be your assessment of the last few years of government in terms of improving the quality of life for citizens and the political relationship with other countries?
The Czech Republic has always belonged to Europe. In the 14th century, during the reign of Emperor Charles IV, Prague became the capital of Europe. Before World War II, no one doubted that we represented an integral part of European culture. Afterward, a rather complicated period awaited us during the German occupation, and as a result, we remained behind the Iron Curtain, in the Soviet sphere of influence.
After the 1989 revolution, we returned to our roots, and during our administration, we revitalized economic development, achieving 4% of GDP annually. We have reduced inflation from 10% to 5%, unemployment to 8,5%, and over the past three years, the volume of foreign investment has multiplied.
I believe our relations should be measured primarily by the confidence of foreign investors, and it is certainly true that this confidence is growing in the Czech Republic.
We are the Central European country that has attracted the most foreign investment per capita in recent years. This fact is extremely important and demonstrates the credibility the Czech Republic enjoys abroad. And these statements are not based on impressions but on statistically verified facts.
How does the country's economic growth affect the internationalization of the Czech Republic?
Approximately 70% of our exports go to the European Union. Of this amount, 90% are high value-added products; in other words, we export very little raw material or semi-finished goods.
Our trade balance with the European Community is positive, which means we are an attractive trading partner. In terms of GDP per capita, we, along with Slovenia, are among the most developed candidate countries.
Spain will hold the presidency of the European Union during the first half of 2002. How do you think this will affect the Czech Republic's accession to the European Union?
I discussed this with President Aznar during his visit to Prague and also during my visit to Madrid.
I believe that the Spanish presidency will pave the way for the enlargement of the European Community and will identify the countries best prepared for accession. I am firmly convinced that the Czech Republic will be among them.
We will not represent any dramatic burden for the European Community because, for example, the proportion of the agricultural population relative to the total active population is only 5%. We are an industrial country, and I believe that in the fields of culture and industry, we are going to write a new chapter in the book of Europe or add a new dish to the European menu.
I am convinced that our Spanish friends will like this food.
Using the second comparative term of your metaphor, if I may, Czech food is almost as good as Spanish food…
We import a lot of wine from Spain and we can offer you a good Czech beer which is, by the way, the best in the world.
Which Spanish organizations does the Czech government maintain contact with?
I believe we have a fantastic collaboration with Spanish institutions. Czech Trade operates in Madrid, and of course, we have developed a strong commercial partnership.
The Spanish Honorary Consul, an important businessman from his country, told me in Madrid that when he comes to Prague, on the Charles Bridge, half of the foreign visitors speak Spanish, so I think our relations are growing and we are getting to know each other better and better.
My only regret is that Spanish investors are not among the leading group investing in the Czech Republic. This group includes, first and foremost, the Netherlands, followed by Germany, France, the UK, and Belgium. Lately, interest from Japanese investors has been growing.
What issues have been left unresolved by your administration, and which ones will be addressed as important points in the next legislature, should you be re-elected?
As you know, social democratic and conservative governments alternate in Europe. Despite some differences, both governments have much in common. It is paradoxical that a left-wing government is promoting a program of massive privatizations, since this has traditionally been one of the objectives of right-wing governments.
Regarding the issue of income tax reform, we want to implement the Swedish model. On the other hand, the fastest-growing budget item is education, and yet the opposition continues to criticize us, claiming that this growth is still too slow. We agree with this assessment and want to see even greater increases in spending on training and education.
The fundamental difference we want to bring to our administration is the fight against economic crime. During the terms of previous governments, a group of people formed who committed these very serious economic crimes, and under today's government, these people are ending up in prison. Along these lines, we want to continue the main objective of our policy: the creation of a true welfare state, like those enjoyed by countries in Western Europe.
There are two significant problems, one of which you just mentioned: economic crime. The other is the country's deficit. What will the Czech government do to reduce it?
Yes. We must be aware that when we privatized the banks, 30% of their loan portfolios were non-performing. And in order for someone to want to buy these banks, we had to transfer these "bad loans" to the State Consolidation Bank. This significantly reduced the deficit in a short period of time. The debts incurred through this transfer became apparent. This indicates that this debt was created not during our administration, even though it is my government that has to deal with it. Currently, the banking sector is healthy, privatized, and we are trying to pay off these debts and, at the same time, recover them.
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