Czech news in brief for March 3: Tuesday's top afternoon headlines

In its first Parliament address of the current term, President Petr Pavel called on government and opposition to lead by example and find common ground to tackle the challenges faced by the Czech Republic and Europe. With a clear emphasis on the country’s place in the EU and NATO, he criticized low defense spending plans, insisting: “Strengthening our defense is not a preparation for war, but on the contrary a way to ensure peace”.

‘Czech Google’ and the country’s largest internet company Seznam.cz has filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, whom they accuse of spreading false claims about the company and damaging their reputation. In this long-running dispute, Babiš doubled down on his attacks on Tuesday, accusing the media owned by the conglomerate (including Seznam Zprávy and Novinky.cz) of “lying and manipulating” on top of allegations of tax evasion.

Czech GDP grew by 2.6 per cent in 2025, according to the latest data from the Czech statistical office (CZSO), slightly improving its previous estimate from January. Analysts have welcomed the results – the highest GDP growth since 2022 – as a sign that the Czech economy was in good shape and back on track after years of low growth and external shocks. Similar numbers are expected for this year.

A unique tram specifically designed to promote mental health and care went into regular service this morning in Prague as part of the Help is at Hand campaign. Inside, contacts and information about ways to access psychological and psychosocial support seek to highlight the fact that seeking help is not a weakness and should not be stigmatized. The tram will run on varying routes for seven weeks.

Most Czechs (92 per cent) would have no problem whatsoever with having Slovaks as neighbors, according to a STEM survey. Tolerated by 84 per cent of respondents, the English follow as Czechs’ favorite potential neighbors, ahead of Americans (81 per cent), French (78 per cent) and Germans (76 per cent). At the bottom of the ranking stand Afghans, Sudanese, Syrians, Roma, Russians and Turkish people.