Czech President Petr Pavel has appointed Mikulas Bek (STAN) as the new Education Minister and Martin Dvorak (STAN) as the Minister for European Affairs. Bek, a former rector of Brno’s Masaryk University, replaces Vladimir Balas (STAN), who resigned from his post last month due to health problems linked to COVID-19. Meanwhile, Dvorak, who was previously the mayor of Hradec Kralove, east Bohemia, the consul general in New York, and the ambassador to Kuwait, takes over the European Affairs portfolio from Bek.

PM Petr Fiala (ODS) introduced both ministers to their offices on the same day of their appointment. The reshuffle is part of Fiala’s coalition government’s ongoing efforts to stabilize public finances through a consolidation package. Both ministers are expected to explain the government’s approach towards the correction of public finances.

According to Pavel, Bek’s priority should be the transformation of the education system, lifelong learning, and helping people adapt to the age of artificial intelligence, automation, and robotics. Pavel emphasized the need for Dvorak to adopt a flexible approach linked to the European search for all possible forms of assistance to Ukraine. Pavel believes Ukraine’s success in the war that Russia is aggressively waging is of direct interest to the Czech Republic, and a failure of Ukraine would have negative impacts on all parts of Czech life.

Pavel expressed satisfaction that his second appointment of ministers during his term as Czech President was “smooth.” In March, the day after he assumed his office, Pavel appointed deputy chairman of Christian Democrats (KDU-CSL) Petr Hladik as the Environment Minister.

Article by Prague Forum