Czech news in brief for March 17: Tuesday's top afternoon headlines

The Czech Republic rejects EU regulatory plans to end the sale of new vehicles with combustion engines from 2035, the government's commissioner for climate change Filip Turek (Motorist Party) said in Brussels today. Although the European Commission softened its original proposal, the Czech Republic continues to be among those opposing the bloc's plans aimed at curbing transport emissions.

No solution has been found yet in the dispute opposing the government and head of state in some ambassadors' nominations, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said after meeting with President Petr Pavel. Shortly after taking office, the new coalition blocked the nominations of some ambassadors approved by the president with the former government (including to key posts in the US and UN), leading to a lingering standoff.

Czech Railways (ČD) paid compensation to 57,000 passengers for train delays in 2025, Novinky.cz reports, several thousand more than the previous year. According to EU regulations, railways must compensate passengers of 25 percent of the ticket's price for delays of at least 60 minutes, and 50 percent if the train is more than 2 hours late. Electronic ČD tickets for delayed trains should be automatically compensated.

Czechs are quite heavily divided in their opinion about the Million Moments for Democracy (Milion chvilek pro demokracii), the organization behind many of the large-scale anti-government protests of recent years, including this upcoming week-end's one in Letná. Results from a Median agency poll indicate a high polarization of Czech society, with the association positively viewed mostly by current opposition voters, and criticized by supporters of the government camp.

WhatsApp is the most popular communication app in the country, and is used by approximately 89 percent of adult Czechs, according to a new survey by cyber-security firm Eset. Facebook Messenger comes close second, used by about 78 percent of people, the two well ahead of Instagram (31 percent). While only marginally favored by people over 30 years old, Discord and Snapchat remain quite popular among younger generations.