Final Word from Wednesday, May 20, 2026
Pres. Bernd Posselt of the Sudeten German Landsmannschaft has given one interview after another to friendly Czech media in the run-up to this weekend's event in Brno. Whenever he's asked to explain what he wants to achieve, he steers the discussion toward European unity. That's our future, he says, without explaining exactly how this unity achieves the goals of his association, as defined in its statutes and policy document. He told Deník that Pres. Petr Pavel's invitation to meet with Bavarian PM Markus Söder after the Brno event is a grand gesture of European solidarity and that Pavel is one of Europe's most esteemed statesmen. Yet by meeting with Söder and by lending his name to the Meeting Brno event, Pavel is going against his own government and a significant part of the Czech population. His popularity is suffering for it, as is Posselt's own standing in the CR, but they both apparently believe that advancing European interests is worth whatever negative reaction they must personally endure. [ Czech Republic Union integration United States of Europe ]
Glossary of difficult words
run-up - the period preceding a notable event;
to steer - to guide or control the movement or direction of;
to esteem - to respect and admire;
standing - position, status or reputation;
to endure - to experience or go through; to suffer (something painful or difficult) patiently.