In 1920, thirty years old Karel Čapek, an emerging literary star of the newborn Czechoslovakia, was thinking about a new play for the National Theater in Prague. Its heroes would be "artificial workers" or "living and intelligent working machines". When he racked brains how to name them, first he came up with Labors. However, he was not entirely satisfied. He shared his doubts with his older brother. Josef Čapek was a respected painter, they had already written a few things together, so Karel often took his advice. "'Name them Robots,' the painter muttered with a brush in his mouth and continued to paint. "And that was it," Karel Čapek himself later described it.
číst celý článek
Despite the pandemic, Česká zbrojovka Group has big goals. The company wants to become a world leader in the production of small arms and reach sales figures of one billion euros by the end of 2025. It is a realistic goal, though, as the combined sales of CZG and Colt already exceed half a billion euros. The company has managed to keep its production running thanks to strict anti-epidemic measures, introduced in mid-March last year. Although some initial transport issues occurred last spring, as global trade was taken by surprise by the pandemic, the company has since managed to steady its exports as well.
číst celý článek
You could say that ophthalmology runs in Adam Janek’s blood since his father is a distinguished eye surgeon. It is also through him that he is half Slovak. Knowing that, it is not surprising that five years ago, on top of acting as a director of Eye Centre Prague for ten years, he also accepted the challenge of applying the know-how of the leading Czech private clinic in Slovakia, that is in Trenčín Eye Centre Sokolík, when the ownership structures of the two clinics met. This interview is taking place at the time of “round” anniversaries being celebrated in both renowned institutions, twenty years in Prague and ten in Trenčín. Long enough to test the foundations they are built on – and both institutions have passed the test of time victoriously. Normally, we would have therefore begun by asking their mutual director about the greatest accomplishments experienced throughout these years. However, in light of today’s difficult pandemic times, we began our talk with related issues and obstacles.
číst celý článek
Miklós Boros sees himself as an essential Central European: he has worked in the diplomatic service in the region for all his life. "We share a common history and culture, and that’s also what we can build on to further develop relations within Central Europe," he notes, adding that there has been an increasing tendency to jointly represent the V4 countries’ interests. "Looking at various indicators, Czechia is a great country to live and do business in, so it is a great honour for me to work on improving Czech-Hungarian relations just here,“ says Mr. Boros, who has been the Ambassador of Hungary to the Czech Republic since 2017.
číst celý článek
„We live in strange times. We receive rewards for being a successful company in various competitions and yet we had to dismiss 20 % of our employees, who had been working with us for many years. We are really sorry about that. However, we would not be able to cope for too long, with revenues steadily decreasing and no end of the covid-19 crisis in sight,” explains Pavel Milata, sales manager of Beznoska, a world-renowned manufacturer of joint and bone implants. He admits that last year he first realized how easily an entrepreneur can find himself “on the edge of the cliff”.
číst celý článek
"Relations between Czechs and Slovaks are not burdened by historical injustices and are based on a combination of emotion and pragmatism. We may have leaned a little more towards pragmatism during those thirty years of independence in a turbulent world, but I am convinced that we need each other and that this factor will play an increasingly important role in our relations", says Ambassador of Slovakia to the Czech Republic Rastislav Káčer.
číst celý článek
