During a press conference with Prime Minister Jiří Paroubek earlier this month, U.S. Ambassador William Cabaniss said the contentious Czech visa issue was on the agenda of the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. He spoke of a significant lobby made up of various groups, including Czechs already living in the United States. He said a major think tank has "drawn up recommendations" on how the Czech Republic could gain so-called visa waiver status. But Czech politicians and lobbyists in Washington say this is not the case, and it appears that any concerted campaign to change the United States' visa policy toward the Czech Republic is at most fledgling, according to interviews. "It's not getting the attention it needs in the right places yet," says Michael G. Rokos, president of the Washington-based American Friends of the Czech Republic (AFCR). Several Jewish- and Cuban-interest organizations based in the United States want to end requiring visas for visiting Czechs, according to the Czech Embassy in Washington. But any organized lobby in Congress is months away, Rokos says. A Congressional delegation of eight U.S. representatives visiting Prague April 21 and 22, including two from Texas, a state with a large Czech population, did not seem eager to discuss the visa issue in depth. The leader of the delegation told Czech media they were aware of and working on the issue, but several lawmakers did not respond to numerous interview requests from The Prague Post. Currently, U.S. citizens are allowed to enter the Czech Republic and stay up to 90 days without a visa, while Czechs entering the United States must go through a lengthy and expensive visa application process that often leads to rejection.
Ambassador William Cabaniss said the contentious Czech visa issue was on the agenda of the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C.
He spoke of a significant lobby made up of various groups, including Czechs already living in the United States. He said a major think tank has "drawn up recommendations" on how the Czech Republic could gain so-called visa waiver status.
But Czech politicians and lobbyists in Washington say this is not the case, and it appears that any concerted campaign to change the United States' visa policy toward the Czech Republic is at most fledgling, according to interviews.
"It's not getting the attention it needs in the right places yet," says Michael G. Rokos, president of the Washington-based American Friends of the Czech Republic (AFCR).
Several Jewish- and Cuban-interest organizations based in the United States want to end requiring visas for visiting Czechs, according to the Czech Embassy in Washington. But any organized lobby in Congress is months away, Rokos says.
A Congressional delegation of eight U.S. representatives visiting Prague April 21 and 22, including two from Texas, a state with a large Czech population, did not seem eager to discuss the visa issue in depth. The leader of the delegation told Czech media they were aware of and working on the issue, but several lawmakers did not respond to numerous interview requests from The Prague Post.
Currently, U.S. citizens are allowed to enter the Czech Republic and stay up to 90 days without a visa, while Czechs entering the United States must go through a lengthy and expensive visa application process that often leads to rejection.
