Turek on Klaus' criticism: He was slurring his words, otherwise I agree with him. I will influence the EU much more from the government
- Filip Turek
- Aug 28
- 3 min read
We talked to former President Václav Klaus about his criticism of the Motorists' statements over dinner, and he chatted about the meaning of the words anti-Soviet and anti-Russian. Filip Turek, an MEP and Central Bohemian leader of the Motorists for the parliamentary elections, expressed himself in the program K věci on CNN Prima NEWS. He agrees with the former President's claim that the war in Ukraine could have been prevented with a different policy. Turek also said that if he were to sit in the next cabinet, he would be able to influence European politics much more than as an MEP.
Regarding the polls that predict an unsuccessful fight for the Chamber of Deputies for the Motorists , Turek noted that their voter bubble is difficult to measure. "For example, these are my supporters, first-time voters who are sympathetic to us, or people who do not want to fill out these statistics. I think that the Motorists will definitely get into the Chamber of Deputies," he is convinced.
The MEP was in Brussels until the end of July – which is why the contact campaign and related events will reportedly only start in full swing in September. "But we should have picked up this pace a little earlier," he admitted on the K věci program .
Anti-Soviet or anti-Russian?
The Turk also responded to criticism from the former head of state. Klaus criticized one of the regional leaders of the Motorists for describing himself as "anti-Russian from childhood." The ex-president had previously described this as a blanket designation on the same program on CNN Prima NEWS and noted that he would understand the designations "anti-Soviet" or "anti-communist".
Turk is left cold by such criticisms. "We were talking about it at dinner. He made a little bit of a fuss about how calling yourself anti-Russian from a young age is stupid. I refuse to harbor hatred for a certain ethnic group. What are we going to talk about - who among us knows the difference between a Russian and a Ukrainian? It's a fratricidal war," he said.
"I am against an offensive war in Ukraine. However, I agree with President Klaus that the conflict has a historical background and that it could have been prevented with a different policy," he emphasized.
Motorists will decide on the future government, claims Turek
The MEP running for a seat in the lower house of Parliament has a difficult task ahead of him, according to his words: "I have to explain to people that if I were part of the next government, I could influence European policy much more significantly than from the position of an MEP, even though I am very effective in the three most important committees ( Turk is a member of the committees for the environment, climate and food safety, for industry, research and energy, and for the internal market and consumer protection, editor's note )."
In the context of the parliamentary elections , he stated that the Motorists are "simply the ones who will decide what the future cabinet will look like." "If we don't get into the Chamber of Deputies, a ANO government with the Communists will form. There is also an option that the movement will reach an agreement with STAN, but the Mayors have distanced themselves from this," he referred to the meeting between Interior Minister Vít Rakušan (STAN) and Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS).
"I do not believe that ANO would reach an agreement with the SPD, because ANO simply does not want such a scenario. The SPD is an opposition force that has never significantly influenced a single law," the MEP also said. In the latest survey by STEM for CNN Prima NEWS, his party would have gained 3.9 percent.
According to Turk, the weaker preferences are not due to cases related to him personally. "Motorists are most harmed by preference surveys. Many journalists want to influence who will govern," he claims. However, his words differ significantly from the speech of the Motorists chairman Petr Macinka from the party's emergency congress .
"We made mistakes and underestimated the power of the media space, which we ourselves gave an excuse to punish us appropriately," Macinka said at the time, adding that government cases are also discussed in the media.
Article taken from: SOURCE
