His political path began even before November 1989, and after that it became his profession. Co-founder of Civic Forum, ambassador, minister several times over, and today a Member of the European Parliament and vice-chair of ODS – Alexandr Vondra has worn all these hats and remains active on the political scene.
You were one of the spiritual fathers of the SPOLU coalition, whose unexpected and sensational victory in the parliamentary elections four years ago removed Andrej Babiš and his ANO party from power, which at the time was still backed by President Miloš Zeman. How do you see that project in retrospect?
The outcome at the time confirmed that the project made sense in parliamentary elections. It consolidated strength and led to the defeat of Andrej Babiš. Of course – there were and are differences of opinion among us, but to be able to pursue your policies, you must succeed in elections and govern at home.
In the European elections, however, you did not manage to defeat ANO, although you trailed them by only about three percent of the vote. Was this success owed to the Motorists, who took away your voters with their double-digit gain?
The differences between the three SPOLU coalition parties are particularly stark when it comes to policies relating to Europe and the “climate” agenda. In the European Parliament we are even in different groups. That is why I pushed for ODS to run alone in the European elections. But after discussion I submitted to the democratic decision in favor of a joint candidacy, since most politicians preferred to focus on the parliamentary elections this year and did not want to signal to the public that SPOLU was divided. That naturally meant that we had to somehow reach an understanding with Luděk Niedermayer, since his views on climate and green policies differ considerably from ours. We naturally paid a price for the compromises. For example, I spent several years in the EP working on cars and their future, trying to defend both industry and customers who buy them as a vital necessity, because the misguided European Commission provoked an unnecessary crisis in the industry and threatened people’s purchasing power. The reactions I received from ordinary people were great. They appreciated and praised my fight. But then we eased off the gas a bit, and into the empty space moved the Motorists with Filip Turek. And those crucial percentage points slipped away from us in the end…
Does ODS and the SPOLU coalition have in Václav Klaus a similar “undoer” as ČSSD had in Miloš Zeman, and are the Motorists Klaus’s revenge on ODS?
Klaus understandably dislikes the move to the center and regularly lashes out at ODS. The Motorists are then a kind of vehicle for his attempt to damage ODS. But it makes no sense to cry over it. Klaus’s influence today is marginal, and his pro-Russian views are miles away from what we stand for and want to defend.
The SPOLU coalition ranks were recently reinforced by former Pirate Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, now represeing your party ODS. As foreign minister, little was expected of him at first. Has it also been a pleasant surprise for you how well he has handled the role?
I think he is a good foreign minister. He holds his ground and doesn’t quibble. I have known him for some time – for a while he even attended my lectures. He can be useful for us in Prague.¨
In the European Parliament you focus on the green agenda. Have you managed to throw sand into the gears of the runaway Green Deal train in Strasbourg, and will you be able to slow it down in the coming years, if not stop it?
A complete abolition of the Green Deal is probably unrealistic – politicians, officials, and part of big business have already invested too much money and effort in it. But the new composition of the European Parliament is better than the previous one. The balance of power is more even. We have so far managed to weaken some of the crazy regulations of the Green Deal, which were approved by the earlier green-socialist majority. A bigger problem today is the European Commission. The same officials who produced these regulations are still there, and now they don’t want to saw off the branch they're sitting on. We must put them under pressure. European farmers are doing quite well at this, as they can organize themselves into action, and the right in Western Europe listens to them as a key electorate. But now we need Germany’s CDU to show more courage, and above all for businesses and consumers to get more involved, unless they want to pay the price in the future and unless Europe is to condemn itself to total decline in competition with America, China, and India. I will remain active in these matters as long as I am able.
Your great success was the European rehabilitation of nuclear energy. Has it already been put on par with natural gas in the EU? Will the EU ever recognize nuclear plants as a source of green energy?
We've made progress, but the glass is still only half full. It is not so much about comparison with gas. Above all, we must give nuclear energy equal standing with renewables. There is no reason to prioritize unstable wind and solar over stable nuclear power. Both contribute equally to decarbonization. And it is fundamentally unfair when, for instance, a Czech or French taxpayer subsidizes through the EU the business of Germans or Spaniards in solar and wind energy (through subsidies and investment in networks), while a German or Spanish taxpayer does not contribute to our or the French nuclear business. This still needs to change. We must level the playing field in the market. That is the main task of the EU common market.
Finally, your personal prediction: will 2025 be the year when Russia's agression against Ukraine ends and a dignified peace agreement between the two countries is signed?
I would very much like that, but I am not overly optimistic. So far Putin shows no interest in peace – he wants to keep nibbling away at pieces of Ukrainian territory. The Americans and Trump should toughen up, and the EU, including us, should do more for Ukraine. It is in our vital interest. Ukraine must be so well armed that it deters Putin once and for all from any further aggression. Then there will be peace. It must be backed by strength, not weakness. Hopefully we will see that soon.
The author is a European editor of Deník
CV BOX
Alexandr Vondra (born August 17, 1961, in Prague) is an MEP and vice-chair of the ODS.
He teaches international relations and security at UJEP in Ústí nad Labem and at CEVRO Institute in Prague. He is also the director of the Center of Transatlantic Relations Council at CEVRO Institute, honorary president of the Czech Euroatlantic Council, and member of the Czech-German Discussion Forum.
He graduated from university in geography and earned a Doctor of Natural Sciences degree. He later worked as a curator of the Asian collections at the Náprstek Museum.
In 1989, he became the spokesperson of Charter 77 and a co-author of the “A Few Sentences” petition. He was imprisoned for his actions. In November 1989, he was one of the founding members of the Civic Forum.
In the years 1990-1992, he worked as an advisor to President Václav Havel. He then spent 5 years as the first deputy minister of foreign affairs and later worked for four years as an ambassador to the USA starting in 1997.
In 2006, becoming minister of foreign affairs for a year. He also spent six years as a senator and two years as minister of defense. He has been an MEP since June 2019.
Vondra is widowed and has three children – Vojtěch (31), Anna (29), and Marie (26).