Final Word from Thursday, February 17, 2005
To paraphrase the king in the classic Czech film "The Proud Princess," KDU-ČSL Chair Miroslav Kalousek yesterday took back what he had called off. After leaking to the press on Tues. that he was going to ask Stanislav Gross to resign, he issued a weak ultimatum yesterday that ensures that Gross will stay where he is. The kingmaker changed his mind after Gross stood his ground. There's too much money at stake in privatization for any coalition partner to walk away, as ODS Chair Mirek Topolánek noted in Právo on Tues. At the same time, Gross regained the upper hand by insisting on meeting individually with the coalition party heads, instead of in a group, as Kalousek had wanted. Some observers understood this as a warning that he was prepared to open his drawer of secret files if need be. Could this be why Kalousek looks so nervous all of a sudden? [Czech Republic politics Pyšná princezna premier prime minister]