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ČRo Dvojka | Viktor Daněk’s perspective: Like a fish in water, but mute. Why is Czech EU Commissioner Síkela invisible at home?

Jozef Síkela has completed his first six months as EU Commissioner for International Partnerships. While abroad he negotiates on strategic raw materials, migration, and global investments, he remains virtually unknown in the Czech Republic. Why is he not visible, and what is the Czech Republic losing as a result? Deputy Director of the EUROPEUM Institute, Viktor Daněk, also reflects on the impact of the Bitcoin scandal in the Czech Republic and sheds light on the turbulent political developments in Poland, the Netherlands, and Romania.

In the Media

4. June 2025

Poland has always been politically very polarized; every time a new government comes to power, it means a 180-degree turn of the wheel: everything the previous government did was wrong, and we have to start over. This is something that persists in Polish politics, it’s intensifying, and it wears out the voters. In campaigns, it works — fearmongering mobilizes voters, turnout was record-high, and this strategy is effective — but it has a devastating impact on society.

When it comes to the actual agenda, I think Jozef Síkela is like a fish in water. His job is to seek out partnerships in third countries around the world that the European Union can benefit from. The problem with his portfolio, however, is that it is focused precisely on those third countries, not on the Czech Republic — and that's why we don’t hear much about his work. Jozef Síkela is everywhere else, just not in Europe.

You can listen to the full interview here.