When European leaders pleaded with Vladimir Putin to end the conflict in Ukraine at a conference in Milan last October, Czech President Milos Zeman was conspicuously absent. While German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande battled in vain to win round the Russian president, Mr Zeman was settled in a plush armchair having a cosy chat over cigarettes and coffee with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
Russia's War Against Ukraine
Financial Times: Czech president Milos Zeman in war of words over Russia
Czech President Milos Zeman attends a press conference following the meeting of the V4 Visegrad Group plus Austria and Slovenia leaders on December 12, 2014 in Prague.
