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Kosovo authorities say around 30 heavily armed Serbs stormed the village of Banjska on Sunday, battling police and barricading themselves into the Serbian Orthodox monastery. Police recaptured the monastery late on Sunday after three attackers and one police officer were killed. Kosovo has accused Serbia of backing the armed militants; Serbia says Kosovo is to blame for mistreating residents in the Serb-majority area. It said one of them was Milan Radojcic, a Kosovo Serb politician and one of the leaders of the Serb List party. Serb List was the dominant Serb party in Kosovo's parliament before Serbs from the north and those loyal to Belgrade boycotted Kosovo's institutions nearly a year ago.
Persons: Milos Vucevic, Bjoern Arild Gram, Ognen, Aleksandar Vucic, Albin, Kurti's, Milan Radojcic, Dejan, Dusan Maksimovic, Fatos Bytyci, Aleksandar Vasovic, Ivana Sekularac, Christina Fincher, Alison Williams Organizations: Kovoso Police, Kosovo police, Police, ", Kosovo Serbs, REUTERS, KFOR, Kosovo, Reuters, Belgrade, Kosovo's, Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party, Thomson Locations: PRISTINA, BELGRADE, Kosovo, Banjska, Serbian, Serbia, NATO, Belgrade, Pristina, Serb, Zvecan, United States, EU, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Kosovo Serb, Kosovo's
Chelsea's woes continued as they lost at home to Aston Villa and Sheffield United slumped to the bottom of the table as they suffered a humiliating 8-0 home thrashing by Newcastle United in which eight different Newcastle players scored. The first north London Premier League derby since 2014 not to feature Harry Kane produced an enthralling contest at The Emirates where the two unbeaten sides went toe-to-toe. Arsenal twice led, first through Cristian Romero's 26th-minute own goal, and again thanks to Bukayo Saka's penalty early in the second half. Mitoma then wrapped up the points as Brighton moved above Tottenham and Arsenal with 15 points. Newcastle ran riot at Sheffield United in the weekend's final action as they put eight past the hapless Blades -- their biggest win in the Premier League since they put eight past Sheffield Wednesday in 1999.
Persons: Arsenal Nunez, Tottenham Hotspur slugged, Harry Kane, Cristian Romero's, Bukayo, Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham, Son Heung, Postecoglou, Declan Rice, Mikel Arteta, West Ham, Mohamed Salah, Nayef Aguerd, Jarrod Bowen, Darwin Nunez, Alexis Mac Allister's, Diogo Jota, Klopp, Malo, Ollie Watkins, Mauricio Pochettino, Villa, Kaoru Mitoma, Dominic Solanke's, Billy Gilmour's, Milos Kerkez's, Neto, Roberto de Zerbi, Fati, Mitoma, Sean Longstaff, Dan Burn, Sven Botman, Callum Wilson, Anthony Gordon, Miguel Almiron, Bruno Guimaraes, Alexander Isak, Martyn Herman, Toby Davis Organizations: Spurs, Arsenal, Liverpool, West Ham Chelsea, Newcastle, Sheffield, Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League, West Ham United . Brighton, Hove Albion shrugged, Bournemouth, Aston Villa, Sheffield United, Newcastle United, London Premier League, The Emirates, Tottenham, Manchester City, West Ham, West, Chelsea, Villa, Brighton, Blades, Sheffield Wednesday, Thomson Locations: Stamford
Davis Cup champions Canada stay perfect, US stunned
  + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +3 min
"I'm happy with the way I competed," world number 158 Diallo said. "Obviously things are going my way right now, so it's easy to stay positive. It was Tiafoe's second straight defeat this week after the world number 11 had crashed against Croatia's Borna Gojo. Maybe you guys are upset he's not here playing for Spain, because he's 20 and I'm 36 and how he's tired and I'm not," Djokovic said. I'm sure he'll win this competition with Spain because of who he is and the quality he possesses and the quality the team possesses."
Persons: Felix Auger, Milos Raonic, Denis Shapovalov, Vasek Pospisil, Leo Borg, Gabriel Diallo, Lorenzo Musetti, Elias Ymer, Diallo, Max Purcell, Matthew Ebden, Nicolas Mahut, Edouard Roger, Vasselin, Botic Van de, Tommy Paul, Tallon Griekspoor, Frances Tiafoe, Croatia's Borna, Novak Djokovic, Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, he's, Shrivathsa Sridhar, Pritha Sarkar Organizations: Canada, Italy, Wednesday, Australia, France, United, C, Spain, South, U.S, Davis Cup, Thomson Locations: Sweden, United, Canada, Bologna, Malaga, Manchester, Croatian, Split, Netherlands, United States, Valencia, Czech Republic, South Korea, Serbia, New York, Spain, Bengaluru
Britain see off Australia, Spain and Italy lose in Davis Cup
  + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +3 min
MANCHESTER, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Britain battled to victory over last year's Davis Cup runners-up Australia in their Finals group stage opener on Wednesday, while Spain and Italy both suffered chastening defeats at home in the premier men's team competition. "It's amazing to play my first Davis Cup tie in the UK in this sort of arena. In Valencia, the Czech Republic took an unassailable 2-0 lead over hosts Spain, who were missing Carlos Alcaraz after the world number two decided to pull out of the squad to recover following his U.S. Open semi-final defeat. Italy also endured a disappointing day in front of home fans in Bologna, as defending champions Canada secured a comfortable Group A victory in a re-match of last year's semi-final. Italy are without Jannik Sinner and Matteo Berrettini this week but still have three top-50 singles players in the squad.
Persons: year's, chastening, Jack Draper, Leon Smith's, Thanasi, Draper, Leon, Dan Evans, Alex de Minaur, Carlos Alcaraz, Tomas Machac, Bernabe Zapata Miralles, Jiri Lehecka, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Alexis Galarneau, Lorenzo Sonego, Gabriel Diallo, Lorenzo Musetti, Denis Shapovalov, Felix Auger, Milos Raonic, Matteo Berrettini, Mackenzie McDonald, Dino Prizmic, Gojo, Frances Tiafoe, Austin Krajicek, Rajeev Ram, Ivan Dodig, Pavic, Shrivathsa Sridhar, Toby Davis Organizations: MANCHESTER, Britain, Manchester, Davis, U.S, Serbia, Canada, Croatia, Thomson Locations: Australia, Spain, Italy, Britain, Valencia, Czech Republic, Malaga, Bologna, Canada, United States, U.S, Bengaluru
The swashbuckling Spaniard got off to a nightmare start as Hurkacz jumped out to a 3-0 first set lead in just six minutes en route to capturing the first set. FOKINA TOPPLES RUUDEarlier, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina battled back from a third set deficit to beat Casper Ruud 7-6(4) 4-6 7-6(4) and deny the third seed a place in the Canadian Open quarter-finals. Ruud was two points away from victory at 5-3 30-0 before Davidovich Fokina served his way out of trouble. Ruud dug himself into an early hole in the breaker with some tentative serving and poor forehands and Davidovich Fokina claimed the win with a drop shot. Up next for Davidovich Fokina is American Mackenzie McDonald, who reached his first quarter-final of a Masters 1000 tournament by dispatching Canadian Milos Raonic 6-3 6-3.
Persons: Carlos Alcaraz, Hubert Hurkacz, Dan Hamilton, Hurkacz, Tommy Paul, Marcos Giron, Scot Andy Murray, Italy's, FOKINA TOPPLES RUUD, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Casper Ruud, Ruud, Davidovich Fokina, Fokina, Mackenzie McDonald, Milos Raonic, Raonic's, McDonald, FRITZ FIZZLES Australia's Alex De Minaur, Taylor Fritz, Fritz, De Minaur, Daniil Medvedev, Italy's Lorenzo Musetti, Medvedev, Rory Carroll, Ken Ferris Organizations: Sobeys, Wimbledon, Canadian, Thomson Locations: Toronto , Ontario, Canada, Toronto, Alcaraz, Marcos Giron ., Norwegian, Los Angeles
Deepset, a German AI startup that offers LLM developer tools, has raised $30 million. The company wants to expand its Haystack product and grow its presence in the US. German AI startup Deepset has raised $30 million in a round led by Revolut investor Balderton Capital. Deepset's capital raise comes as AI startups account for a higher proportion of venture capital dealmaking. AI startups raised $25 billion in the opening half of the year against a backdrop of falling VC investment, Crunchbase data shows.
Persons: Milos Rusic, Rusic Organizations: Balderton Capital, Airbus, Siemens, Balderton, GV, Harpoon Ventures Locations: London, Berlin
TORONTO, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Gael Monfils rolled back the years to upset Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4 6-3 on Wednesday at the Canadian Open while Daniil Medvedev got his first U.S. Open tune-up event off to a solid start and home favourite Milos Raonic eased into the third round. The 36-year-old Monfils saved all three break points he faced and broke Tsitsipas' serve three times, including in the final game to send off the world number four in 85 minutes. Second seed Medvedev, competing for the first time since losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon semi-finals, dominated proceedings from the baseline during his 6-2 7-5 win over Italian qualifier Matteo Arnaldi. Former champion Medvedev, whose sole Grand Slam title came at the 2021 U.S. Open, saved the three break points he faced against Arnaldi and produced 29 winners as he wrapped up the victory in 86 minutes. Eighth seed American Taylor Fritz, who followed up his Atlanta title with a run to the semi-finals last week in Washington, advanced with a 7-6(7) 3-6 6-3 win over Frenchman Ugo Humbert.
Persons: Monfils, Stefanos, Daniil Medvedev, Milos Raonic, Frenchman, Russia's Medvedev, Medvedev, Carlos Alcaraz, Matteo Arnaldi, Mackenzie McDonald, Raonic, Frances Tiafoe, Taro Daniel, Daniel's, Taylor Fritz, Frenchman Ugo Humbert, Frank Pingue, Pritha Sarkar Organizations: TORONTO, Canadian, U.S, Wimbledon, Italian, Arnaldi, Eighth, Atlanta, Thomson Locations: Indian Wells, Washington, Toronto
SARAJEVO, July 31 (Reuters) - The United States on Monday imposed sanctions against four top Bosnian Serb officials, including the Serb member of the country's presidency, for undermining a U.S.-sponsored peace deal that ended the Balkan country's war in the 1990s. The constitution is part of the Dayton peace accords that ended the 1992-1995 Bosnian war in which 100,000 were killed, dividing the country into two autonomous regions, the Serb Republic and the Bosniak-Croat Federation, linked via a weak central government. Late in June, lawmakers in the Serb Republic voted to suspend rulings by Bosnia's constitutional court, a vote initiated by the region's separatist pro-Russian President Milorad Dodik who is already under U.S. and UK sanctions. "This action threatens the stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the hard-won peace underpinned by the Dayton Peace Agreement," said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. They stepped up activities undermining state institutions in recent months, including suspension of decisions by an international peace envoy.
Persons: Bosnia's, Zeljka Cvijanovic, Matthew Miller, Milorad Dodik, Radovan Viskovic, Milos Bukejlovic, Nenad Stevandic, Brian E, Nelson, Cvijanovic, Stevandic, Radovan Kovacevic, Dodik, Daria Sito, Nick Macfie Organizations: Bosnian, U.S . State Department, - Croat Federation, Russian, U.S . Department of, Treasury, Terrorism, Financial, Dodik, Thomson Locations: SARAJEVO, United States, U.S, Serb Republic, Bosnian, Dayton, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia
Bo Goldman, one of Hollywood’s most admired screenwriters, who took home Oscars for his work on “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975) and “Melvin and Howard” (1980), died on Tuesday in Helendale, Calif. The resulting movie, which starred Jack Nicholson as a rebellious new patient who disrupts a psychiatric ward, came out in 1975 and was a career maker. Mr. Goldman and Lawrence Hauben, who shared screenwriting credit, won the Oscar for best screenplay adapted from other material; the movie was also named best picture and earned Oscars for Mr. Forman, Mr. Nicholson and Louise Fletcher, who played the fierce Nurse Ratched. “Even then I hung my head,” Mr. Goldman wrote in a 1981 essay for The New York Times about the insecurities of a writer’s life. “After all, I had adapted somebody else’s work; was it really mine?”
Persons: Bo Goldman, “ Melvin, Howard ”, Todd Field, Goldman, Milos Forman, , Ken Kesey’s, Jack Nicholson, Lawrence Hauben, Oscar, Forman, Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Ratched, , ” Mr Organizations: The New York Times Locations: Helendale, Calif
Summer travel can be done on a budget, but for the world's wealthiest people, no expense is spared. Top travel agents shared the hottest spots they're seeing this year, from Paros to the Côte d'Azur. Instead, look to the elite group of agents who help wrangle those jaunts and cater to the wealthiest, most demanding vacationers. Courtesy of John CliffordJohn Clifford in San Diego runs International Travel Management and has expertise with LGBTQ+ travel. Insider asked these travel professionals to share the secrets of where and how the richest 1% are vacationing in summer 2023.
Persons: they've, Jules Maury, Jules Maury Jules Maury, Scott Dunn, John Clifford, John Clifford John Clifford, Edward Granville ., Edward Granville Edward Granville, Granville, Maury, I've, Clifford, he's, Côte, they're, We've, Rod, it's, Paros, It's, Cosme, Parilio, Avant, she's, she'd, Milos Organizations: Côte, Service, San Diego, Travel Management, d'Azur, Porto Heli, Italy, Avant Mar, HBO, Domenico Palace Locations: Paros, Wall, Silicon, San, Red Savannah, London, COVID, Europe, Cannes, France, Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Botswana's Okavango Delta, Kenya, Porto, Greece, Italy, Spain, Athens, Amalfi Coast, Rome, Sicily, Domenico
Britain's Broady finally gets his Wimbledon moment
  + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Mitch Phillips | ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +3 min
LONDON, July 6 (Reuters) - British wild card Liam Broady was basking in the long-awaited glory of a Centre Court victory on Thursday that had appeared to be moving beyond the 29-year-old after a career of frustration and unfulfilled potential. I played on Wimbledon Court One in the final of the juniors. "I feel like it's taken a monumental effort for me personally to be able to win a match on Centre Court at Wimbledon," he added after his 6-4 3-6 4-6 6-3 6-0 win. It is the pinnacle of the sport -it's the pinnacle of almost any sport, Centre Court of Wimbledon. "The stress from when you find out you are on Centre Court against the world number four is with you up until you step on the court and every point until you finish the match."
Persons: Liam Broady, Casper Ruud, Andy Murray, Milos Raonic, Alex de Minaur, Broady, Mitch Phillips, Ken Ferris Organizations: Wimbledon, Centre, Court, Thomson Locations: British
It may be a little hard to remember, with all the injuries, career detours and mystifying losses, but there was a time when everything seemed possible for Canadian tennis. Every time a tennis fan looked up, it seemed, another wildly talented or gritty Canadian had made a Grand Slam final. Bianca Andreescu even won one, beating Serena Williams in the 2019 U.S. Open when she was still a teenager, playing with a style so creative she left tennis aesthetes drooling. Lately, with all the bum knees (Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger-Aliassime), stress fractures (Leylah Fernandez) and the mental anguish (Milos Raonic and Andreescu) that so many players struggle with these days, even Fernandez’s improbable run to the 2021 U.S. Open final can feel like it was a long time ago. And then there was a day like Wednesday at Wimbledon, with the rain finally going away long enough for outdoor tennis to happen, for Shapovalov and Raonic to show why there had been so much fuss in the first place.
Persons: detours, Bianca Andreescu, Serena Williams, Denis Shapovalov, Felix Auger, Leylah Fernandez, Milos Raonic, Shapovalov, Raonic, Eugenie Bouchard Organizations: aesthetes, Wimbledon
"Russia acts deliberately against Czechia's political, economic and social stability," the strategy document said. "Russia and China share the interest to weaken the influence and unity of democratic countries. The country's previous security strategy, the core for policymaking, from 2015 had not mentioned Russia or China by name. The strategy said Russia was using hybrid actions to weaken democratic institutions and destabilise society. "Unless there is a fundamental and deep political and societal change in Russia, Russia will remain a threat to the European space regardless of the result of the war in Ukraine," the document said.
Persons: Vladimir Putin, Sergei Savostyanov, Milos Zeman, Jan Lopatka, Howard Goller Organizations: Sputnik, REUTERS, NATO, EU, Czech, Thomson Locations: Kala, Derbent, Dagestan, Russia, REUTERS PRAGUE, Czech, China, Europe, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Moscow, Taiwan
PRAGUE, June 13 (Reuters) - Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu met the head of the upper house of the Czech parliament on Tuesday as part of a European trip that has angered China. China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Taiwan strongly objects to China’s sovereignty claims and says only the island’s people can decide their future. Taiwan has no formal diplomatic ties with any European country except the Vatican. China's Foreign Ministry urged Europe on Friday not to have any official exchanges with Taiwan or support "independence forces" ahead of the trip.
Persons: Joseph Wu, Wu, Milos Vystrcil, Petr Pavel, Marketa, Pavel, Jan Lopatka, Nick Macfie Organizations: Taiwan Foreign, NATO, European Union, China's Foreign Ministry, Thomson Locations: PRAGUE, Czech, China, Taiwan, Central, Eastern, Ukraine, Prague, Brussels, Czech Republic, Beijing, Taipei
Serbia's President Vucic steps down as head of ruling party
  + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +1 min
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic stepped down as leader of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) at a party congress on Saturday, saying a new approach was needed to unite the country, but said he would remain head of state. Another anti-government protest is scheduled for later on Saturday. Leaders of the SNS accepted Vucic's resignation offer at the party congress in Kragujevac, central Serbia, and appointed defense minister Milos Vucevic to replace him, as Vucic had proposed. Opposition parties and rights watchdogs have long accused Vucic and the SNS of autocracy, stifling media freedoms, violence against political opponents, corruption and ties with organized crime. Vucic and his allies deny the accusations.
[1/5] People attend a protest "Serbia against violence" in reaction to the two mass shootings in the same week, that have shaken the country, in Belgrade, Serbia, May 27, 2023. REUTERS/Marko DjuricaBELGRADE, May 27 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands braved rain and wind in Belgrade on Saturday in an anti-government protest over two mass shootings that killed 18 people, blaming the deaths on a culture of violence that critics say authorities have allowed to permeate society. On May 3 a teenage boy killed nine pupils and a security guard in Belgrade in the first school mass shooting in Serbia, and a day later a 21-year-old man killed eight outside the city. It was the fourth such protest in as many weeks, with demonstrators turning up in similar numbers to the previous three rallies despite bad weather. On Friday, tens of thousands of people bussed-in from across Serbia, neighbouring Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia and North Macedonia rallied in the centre of Belgrade in a show of support for Vucic.
Despite having one of the world’s highest rates of gun ownership in the world, mass shootings like this are extremely rare in Serbia. Most people simply inherited weapons from their parents and grandparents – remnants of the sort of violence that no longer plagues the region. While the two “gratuitous” acts of violence that shocked the country this month were without precedent, O’Donnell said, other types of violence are more banal. ‘Serbia against violence’Since the shootings, tens of thousands of Serbians have taken to the streets in opposition-led “Serbia against violence” marches, demanding the resignation of several government ministers. Against this public demand for a mellowing of the political culture, Vučić has seemed unsure how to respond.
But now it wants tourists to get to know lesser-known locations across its thousands of sprawling islands. Currently, Germany and the U.K. represent Greece's largest inbound tourism markets by revenue, followed by the United States, France and Italy. An eco-paradise surrounded by 24 islets, Lipsi forms part of the Dodecanese island collection in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Alonissos, SporadesDivers' delight Alonissos, part of the Sporades group of islands, is a diver's paradise and the site of Greece's first underwater museum. Alonissos, part of the Sporades archipelago in the northwest Aegean Sea, is known for its diving spots, including Greece's first underwater museum, the "Parthenon of the Wrecks."
Belgrade, Serbia CNN —Serbians are reeling and demanding answers after two mass shootings in less than 48 hours left multiple people dead, with widespread calls for tough action to prevent any further repeat of such tragedies. You could never dream that this would happen here,” Belgrade resident Marko Kovacevic told CNN. “This is the worst thing that happened in Serbia since the bombing in 1999,” another resident, David Stevens, told CNN at a vigil in Belgrade. The murderer had no empathy or remorse,” he told CNN in an interview on Thursday. His deputy, Milan Pašić, told CNN his boss had offered his resignation, but it was not clear if it would be accepted.
Sabers 6, Flyers 3Alex Tuch scored his second career hat trick to help Buffalo to a win against host Philadelphia. Morgan Frost scored twice and Felix Sandstrom made 23 saves for the Flyers, who had their seven-game point streak snapped. Avalanche 5, Stars 2Nathan MacKinnon had two goals, Mikko Rantanen had a goal and three assists, and host Colorado beat Dallas. Ben Hutton, Zach Whitecloud and Brett Howden also notched goals for Vegas, which is 5-1-1 in its past seven games. J.J. Moser and Milos Kelemen scored for the Coyotes (27-37-13, 67 points), who have dropped seven straight games (0-5-2).
[1/3] The Speaker of the Chamber of the Deputies of Czech Republic Marketa Pekarova Adamova makes a speech at the Parliament in Taipei, Taiwan March 28, 2023. REUTERS/Ann WangTAIPEI, March 28 (Reuters) - The speaker of the lower chamber of the Czech parliament told Taiwanese lawmakers on Tuesday that her country and Taiwan are bound together by freedom and democracy, pledging to always stand with the island's people. Addressing Taiwan's parliament, Marketa Pekarova Adamova said Taiwan and the Czech Republic share the same story. Although the Czech Republic does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Pekarova Adamova is visiting with a delegation of some 150, mostly businesspeople. Pekarova Adamova's trip to Taiwan follows one by Senate speaker Milos Vystrcil in 2020.
The roughly 150-person Czech delegation arrived in Taipei on Saturday, led by the speaker of the lower chamber of the Czech parliament, Marketa Pekarova Adamova. "This visit of the delegation to Taiwan certainly represents that Taiwan is in a democratic alliance," she said. Pekarova Adamova, who is due to meet Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen later on Monday, told the business forum that Taiwan was a crucial investment partner for her country. "Taiwan is not only an important economic partner but also a friendly and democratic partner and deserves our attention and support." Newly elected Czech president Petr Pavel drew a sharp rebuke from Beijing in January after taking a call from Tsai, a clear shift from his predecessor's attempts to win Chinese business.
[1/6] Protesters shout slogans and hold signs during a demonstration against a Western-backed deal on normalizing ties between Kosovo and Serbia in Belgrade March 17, 2023. REUTERS/Djordje KojadinovicBELGRADE, March 17 (Reuters) - Several thousand people gathered in Belgrade to protest against a Western-backed deal to normalise ties between Kosovo and Serbia, which they view as recognition of Kosovo independence. Bilateral ties need to be mended for Serbia and Kosovo to achieve their strategic goal of joining the EU. Protesters held Serbian flags and banners reading "Kosovo is not for sale," "Serbia, not European Union," and "No to capitulation." "This is just the start of the protest," said Milos Jovanovic, leader of the Democratic Party of Serbia, which was one of the protest organisers.
[1/2] Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen speaks with Czech President-elect Petr Pavel on a conference call in Taipei, Taiwan January 30, 2023 in this handout picture. Taiwan Presidential Office/Handout via REUTERSPRAGUE, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Czech lower house of parliament speaker Marketa Pekarova Adamova on Wednesday assured Taiwan of her country's support for partner states who respect human rights and liberal democracy, ahead of a visit to Taipei planned for March. The Czechs have been intensifying relations with the self-ruled island, which giant neighbour China claims as its own, and President-elect Petr Pavel spoke with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-Wen on Monday, drawing a sharp rebuke from Beijing. "I assured the minister that systematic support of partners who respect human rights and the principles of liberal democracy belongs among priorities of our parliamentary diplomacy," she said in a statement issued through her spokesman. Most countries avoid high-level public interactions with Taiwan and its president, not wishing to provoke China, the world's second largest economy.
PRAGUE, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Czech President-elect Petr Pavel is due to speak with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen on Monday, Pavel's spokeswoman said, a highly unusual move given the lack of formal ties and a diplomatic coup for Taipei that is likely to anger China. Most countries' leaders avoid high-level public interactions with Taiwan and its president, not wishing to provoke China, the world's second largest economy. In 2016, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump spoke by telephone with Tsai shortly after winning the election, setting off a storm of protest from Beijing. Pavel's spokeswoman said he and Tsai were expected to speak at 1000 GMT. The Czech Republic, like most countries, has no official diplomatic relations with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, but the two sides have moved closer together as Taipei seeks new friends in Eastern and Central Europe.
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