UPDATE 2: The Czech government surived the no-confidence motion, with Public Affairs supporting the coalition.
UPDATE: Shortly after the president's statement about a deal between government parties being reached, the junior coalition member Public Affairs, whose support for the government in the no-confidence vote was uncertain, said that it will back the government. Thus it appears that the coalition will survive the vote scheduled for later today.
Prague - Few hours before a no-confidence vote, Czech President Václav Klaus invited the representatives of government parties for talks. After the meeting that lasted more than two hours, Klaus said to media that a "deal" was reached, however refused to give any details.
It is the most recent turn in the political crisis that erupted last week and that threatens the very survival of the government of PM Petr Nečas, formed no more than five months ago with a comfortable majority of 118 out of 200 deputies. However, the current crisis may very well cause the government's fall, with the support of a junior government party uncertain.
In a few hours, the government will face a no-confidence vote initiated by the opposition Social Democrats in response to a serious corruption affair. While the senior right-wing ODS of PM Petr Nečas and the conservative TOP 09 will support the government, the position of Public Affairs, the smallest member of the coalition, is not clear.
Read more: Czech govt to face no-confidence vote over corruption
Yesterday evening, less than 24 hours before the no-confidence motion, a serious conflict erupted between ODS and Public Affairs.
Read more: Key govt meeting shipwrecks ahead of no-confidence vote
In addition, the Czech daily Lidové noviny said that Czech president Václav Klaus met yesterday evening with PM Nečas and Transport Minister Vít Bárta who is considered an informal leader of Public Affairs. According to the sources of the daily, Klaus "urged" Bárta "not to do anything stupid".
Public Affairs is a newbie of the Czech political scene, whose success in the late-May legislative election was a shock. Many analysts predicted that the party would be the most volatile factor of the center-right government.
