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Jan Zahradil

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Jan Zahradil
MEP
Zahradil in 2019
President of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party
In office
1 October 2009 – 1 April 2020
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byGiorgia Meloni
Chairman of the European Conservatives and Reformists
In office
8 March 2011 – 11 December 2011
Vice-ChairTimothy Kirkhope
Preceded byMichał Kamiński
Succeeded byMartin Callanan
Vice-Chair of the European Conservatives and Reformists
Czech Delegation
In office
11 December 2011 – 12 June 2014
ChairmanMartin Callanan
Served alongsideRyszard Legutko
Derk Jan Eppink
Geoffrey Van Orden
In office
24 June 2009 – 14 July 2009
ChairmanTimothy Kirkhope
Served alongsideAdam Bielan
Member of the European Parliament for the Czech Republic
In office
1 May 2004 – 15 July 2024
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
20 June 1998 – 20 July 2004
Member of the Federal Assembly
In office
6 June 1992 – 31 December 1992
Personal details
Born (1963-03-20) 20 March 1963 (age 61)
Prague, Czechoslovakia
NationalityCzech
Political partyCivic Democratic Party (1991–present)
Alma materUniversity of Chemistry and Technology, Prague
ProfessionScientist
Websitehttp://zahradil.eu

Jan Zahradil (born 20 March 1963)[1] is a Czech politician for the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) who had been Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2004 to 2024. Zahradil also served as Member of the Chamber of Deputies (MP) from 1998 to 2004.

A scientific researcher by profession, Zahradil entered politics during the Velvet Revolution. He was a member of the Federal Assembly of the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic, before becoming an adviser to Prime Minister Václav Klaus. In 1998, Zahradil was elected to the national Chamber of Deputies. Three years later, he became vice-chairman of the ODS.From his election to the Chamber of Deputies until 2006, Zahradil was the ODS shadow minister for Foreign Affairs.

Political career

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Early political career

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From 1990 until 1992, Zahradil was a Member of the Federal Assembly of the Czech and Slovak Federative Republic. From 1995 until 1997, he was a foreign policy adviser to the Prime Minister, Václav Klaus. In 1998, Zahradil was elected as a Member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic[2] and held that position until 2004.

Zahradil was elected vice-chairman of ODS in 2001 and served as first vice-chairman between 2002 and 2004. In 2002 after the departure of Václav Klaus from the head of ODS, he applied for the post of the chairman of the ODS, but finished third in the election behind Mirek Topolánek and Petr Nečas.[3] He was also vice-chairman of the ODS from 2014 to 2016.[4]

European Parliament

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In October 2018, Zahradil announced his intention to become the European Conservatives and Reformists Group's candidate for the European Commission presidency. He was endorsed by the ECR Group the same year on 13 November, making him the first Spitzenkandidat from Eastern Europe.[5] Since the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) was founded in 2010 Jan Zahradil has been its president.[6]

Jan Zahradil with the other candidates for President of the European Commission, 2019

In 2023, Zahradil resigned from the position of chairman of the ODS MEP club. At the same time, he announced that he will no longer be a candidate in the European Parliament elections in 2024.[7][8] He was replaced by MEP Veronika Vrecionová as chairman of the ODS MEPs' club, MEP and several-time former Czech minister Alexandr Vondra became the leader of the ODS for the 2024 European Parliament elections.[9]

One of the reasons for Jan Zahradil's departure from European politics was probably the connection of his ODS with other Czech center-right parties, TOP 09 and KDU-ČSL in the SPOLU coalition. Jan Zahradil was an obstacle to this connection with his Eurosceptic views.[10]

Azerbaijan Statements

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Jan Zahradil with the chairman of the ODS and later Prime Minister Petr Fiala

Zahradil made controversial statements whitewashing European Parliament's criticisms on the state of human rights in Azerbaijan, mentioned in three European Parliament resolutions in the period of 2015–2018. He called the resolutions "short-sighted, one-sided, one-issue resolutions"[11] and argued that Azerbaijan is a "victim of political games" asserting that the EU should not sacrifice its partnership with Azerbaijan because of its geopolitical and energy significance for Europe.[12]

In April 2018 a Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe investigation revealed that Azerbaijan blindfolded several members of PACE, bringing into play the infamous caviar diplomacy to tone down and soothe criticism towards Azerbaijan. These members were subjected to sanctions.[13] Commenting on these events, Zahradil said: "The Council of Europe has made unilateral and biased decisions on Azerbaijan and it should be abolished".[14]

Political views

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Zahradil has been described as Anglophile, Atlanticist, national liberal and libertarian who holds liberal viewpoints on immigration and same-sex marriage.[15] He is a critic of the Czech monarchists and the Habsburg dynastic family, which ruled the Czech state from 1526 to 1918, because of which in the past he got into a dispute with the Czech Christian Democrats and the Czech Catholic Church.[16][17] In the post-Babiš premiership era of ODS, his views (e.g. on the European Union, on cooperation with former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš or on the overall concept of politics) can be described as minority, which may be one of the reasons for his planned departure from the European Parliament.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Jan Zahradil". European Parliament. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  2. ^ "Parliament of the Czech Republic, Chamber of Deputies". Archived from the original on 26 April 2005. Retrieved 27 April 2006.
  3. ^ {{Cite web|agency=Czech News Agency|date=15 December 2002|title=Oprať ODS převzal Mirek Topolánek|url=https://www.idnes.cz/zpravy/domaci/oprat-ods-prevzal-mirek-topolanek.A021215_102816_domaci_jan%7Cnewspaper=[[Mladá fronta Dnes]|publisher=Mafra|access-date=2 June 2024|language=cs}}
  4. ^ "Nový předseda ODS Fiala dostal velmi silný mandát. Druhým mužem strany je Zahradil". Radiožurnál (in Czech). Czech Radio. 18 January 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  5. ^ "Conservatives endorse Czech MEP for Commission top job". Politico Europe. 13 November 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  6. ^ "Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE)". ACRE. Archived from the original on 12 August 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  7. ^ "Zahradil jako šéf klubu ODS v europarlamentu končí, kandidovat už nebude". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  8. ^ "Zahradil po 20 letech skončí v europarlamentu, příští rok nebude kandidovat". Seznam Zprávy (in Czech). Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  9. ^ "Spolu zahájilo kampaň do eurovoleb. Půjde o střet demokratů se stranami jednoho muže, říká Vondra". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  10. ^ "Zahradil jako šéf klubu ODS v europarlamentu končí, kandidovat už nebude". Novinky.cz (in Czech). Borgis. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  11. ^ "EU should engage with Azerbaijan or Putin will". Euractiv. 6 June 2018.
  12. ^ "Zahradil: Azerbaijan plays very crucial role in geopolitical transport and energy issues". Report.az. 21 June 2020.
  13. ^ "Report of the Independent Investigation Body on the allegations of corruption within the Parliamentary Assembly" (PDF). Parliamentary Assembly. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  14. ^ "Zahradil: Council of Europe should stop adoption of biased decisions on Azerbaijan". Report.az. 21 June 2020.
  15. ^ Hannan, Daniel (9 March 2011). "Conservatives elect Czech Eurosceptic as their new leader". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 March 2011.
  16. ^ Kačmár, Tomáš. "Zahradil ve sporu s lidovci. Opřel se do Duky a monarchie, s Bělobrádkem se pohádal jako ve školce". CNN Prima News (in Czech). PrimaTV. Retrieved 2 June 2024 – via CNN.
  17. ^ "Připomíná mu Habsburky. Zahradil demonstroval proti Mariánskému sloupu. Duka sloup požehnal". Echo24 (in Czech). 15 August 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  18. ^ "Odmítaný Zahradil se loučil s ODS. Odcházím na střídačku, řekl a zastal se Babiše". Aktuálně.cz. Economia. 14 April 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
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