Final Word from Monday, May 11, 2026

In business, Andrej Babiš was known for using due diligence to get confidential information from a rival, acting on it to improve his own position and then drawing out the negotiations as the value of the target company began to fall. Babiš is now using similar tactics on Pres. Petr Pavel. The Castle has willingly volunteered all the details of what it will do if Pavel isn't allowed to lead the Czech delegation to the Nato summit in early July. And how has Babiš reacted? By announcing that the decision on the makeup of the delegation won't be made until the end of June. This will leave very little time for Pavel to follow through on his threat to file a jurisdictional complaint once he is officially left off the list and, if he does indeed file the complaint, it will force the hand of the Constitutional Court to rule with lightning speed or to disappoint the president and his fans. In business dealings with Babiš, the sooner the target company realized what was happening and changed its negotiating tactics, the better its chances. [ Czech Republic competence takeover ]