Trump and Řehka
Army Chief of Staff Karel Řehka is a product of the American structures that Donald Trump is taking action against. Řehka left the army in early 2020 to head the civilian NÚKIB cybersecurity office, which has been working with its U.S. counterparts for about eight years to force Czech companies to squeeze out Chinese IT suppliers. Řehka did such a good job there that he was bumped up to army chief of staff in July 2022 and has since enjoyed transatlantic protection, despite his regular violation of the principle of civilian control of the army. Defense Min. Jana Černochová of ODS has been prevented from putting her foot down by Pres. Petr Pavel and PM Petr Fiala and their minders, who saw greater long-term potential in Řehka. But after a report last week by Aktuálně.cz about legal violations by people under Řehka, Černochová saw her chance yesterday on TV Prima to pounce. Alas, Fiala won't know what to do about Řehka until someone signals to him what Trump's plans are for the Czechs.
Glossary of difficult words
to bump someone up - to move someone to a higher level or status; to promote someone;
to put one's foot down - to take a firm stand; to use one's authority to stop something from happening;
minder - a person whose job it is to look after someone or something;
to pounce - to notice and take swift advantage of a mistake or sign of weakness.