Final Word from Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Presidential candidate Petr Pavel told Michal Půr of CNN Prima News last night that, contrary to speculation by journalists and some experts, ex-diplomat Petr Kolář probably would not join his administration as his chief of staff or head of his foreign office if he were elected president. Kolář is not only a very experienced diplomat and a person who knows his way around politics very well, Pavel said, but he is also someone who is extremely sensitive about his independence. So he can hardly imagine that Kolář would want to be employed in a job with fixed hours, Pavel said, but he will be very glad if Kolář is available to him and will be willing to advise him whenever necessary. Kolář is usually referred to in the media as an ex-diplomat, but he is now employed by one of the top U.S. lobbying firms, Squire Patton Boggs. It boasts that it "deliver(s) commercially focused business solutions by combining [its] legal, lobbying and political capabilities and invaluable connections on the ground to a diverse mix of clients." So you could say that Kolář would be Pavel's fully independent lobbyist-in-chief. [ Czech Republic 360° ambassador ]