Prague Protocol: Pavel and Macinka Fly to New York Separately Again

Czech President Petr Pavel and Foreign Minister Petr Macinka (Motorists party) are heading to the UN General Assembly in New York — but not together. According to the press offices of the Czech Foreign Ministry and Prague Castle, Pavel, as head of the Czech delegation, will travel on a military special flight, while Macinka will fly commercial. Part of the minister's team, however, will still join the president's plane.

Who's Flying With Whom

According to the editorial team's sources, three ministry staffers will travel with the presidential delegation: the head of the Foreign Ministry's communications department, one of the department directors, and a photographer. "For security reasons we don't disclose who travels how, but part of the delegation will go with the president and part on a commercial flight," confirmed Foreign Ministry spokesman Adam Cyrgo.

According to Castle spokesman Daniel Drake, Macinka had earlier been offered a seat on the president's military plane — he was reportedly welcome on board. In the president's inner circle, Macinka's decision to fly separately is seen as an attempt to avoid spending time with the head of state.

The Foreign Ministry offers a different explanation: Macinka's schedule in New York differs from the president's — the minister will be working there until Friday, while Pavel flies out on Wednesday aboard the special aircraft to Nebraska for a meeting with the state governor and National Guard representatives. In addition, a ministry representative noted, a one-way commercial ticket is usually more expensive than a round-trip fare, making it economically impractical to fly with the president in just one direction.

Same Hotel, Almost No Meetings

Despite flying separately, Pavel and Macinka will stay at the same hotel in New York. Their paths may cross only at the opening of the general debate — where delegations traditionally sit near one another — and during US President Donald Trump's address. According to sources, no joint meeting between the two Czech officials is on the agenda in New York, though Pavel's team stresses the president is not ruling out a conversation.

Castle sources note that coordination with the ministry ahead of the UN General Assembly is noticeably better than it was before the summer's NATO summit in Ankara, when tensions between Pavel and Andrej Babiš's government were especially acute — back then, the prime minister, president and foreign minister also flew to Turkey separately.

The president will deliver his national address on September 23 and plans to take part in several related events, as well as visit the memorial to the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, marking the tragedy's recent 25th anniversary. Minister Macinka will spend nearly 20 days in the US holding bilateral meetings with counterparts, taking part in an informal EU Council session, and joining talks between the Visegrád Four foreign ministers and their Indian counterpart.

A Personal Conflict With History

Former Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, who had a smooth working relationship with President Pavel, used to fly to the General Assembly together with the head of state. Separate trips by Czech officials have happened before: in 2011, President Václav Klaus and Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg also flew to New York separately amid an open conflict over the country's foreign policy direction.

The current friction between Pavel and Macinka has also been fueled by the president's refusal to appoint Motorists MP Filip Turek as environment minister. On Monday, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš attended a meeting at the Castle for the first time in a long while — Macinka declined to take part. Afterward, Babiš said it was time for the minister to hold a separate one-on-one meeting with the president. That meeting could take place on Friday, before the flight to New York, on the occasion of a visit by the King of Jordan.

Source: seznamzpravy.cz