Talks in English – Alexandr Vondra and Václav Havel
- Where: Vaclav Havel Library, Řetězová 7, Prague
- When: April 9, 2014, 19:00 – 21:00
The first in a short series of talks in English with colleagues and friends of Václav Havel. Alexandr Vondra is a former dissident, Charter 77 spokesman, advisor to Václav Havel, Czech Ambassador to the United States, and politician. The event will focus on Václav Havel’s views on foreign policy, as well as today's situation in Ukraine, Russia and elsewhere as viewed by his former diplomat, exactly fifteen years after the country's accession to NATO. Chaired by writer and journalist David Vaughan.
Alexandr Vondra was active as a dissident and a signatory of Charter 77. In 1989 he was the Charter 77 spokesman and in
the spring of that same year he co-wrote the petition “A Few Sentences”. At the time of the Velvet Revolution in November
1989 he was one of the founders of Civic Forum. Between 1990 and 1992 he was an advisor to President Havel on foreign
affairs and from 1992 to 1997 he was Deputy Foreign Minister. From 1997-2001 he served as the Czech Ambassador to
the United States. From September 2006 to January 2007 he was Czech Foreign Minister. In October 2006 he was elected
to the upper house of the Czech Parliament, the Senate, for the Civic Democratic Party. From January 2007 to May 2009
he was Minister for European Affairs and from July 2010 to December 2012 he was Defence Minister.
David Vaughan is a broadcaster, journalist and university lecturer. He is author of the book “Battle for the Airwaves”
on the role of the media in the run-up to WWII. For eight years he was editor-in-chief of Radio Prague, the international
service of Czech Radio, and prior to that he was the Prague correspondent of the BBC. He has won national and
international awards for his radio work. His documentary novel “Slyšte můj hlas” (Hear My Voice) was serialized by
Czech Radio in 2013 and is to be published this year.
Admission free; no reservation required