US to provide 600 thousand US dollars for first three Czech projects

The US has pledged to provide 600 thousand US dollars in funding so far for three out of eight Czech scientific projects; Henry Obering, the head of the US Missile Defense Agency, made the announcement in Prague on Friday. He stressed it was only the start of future cooperation. The US agreed to finance the projects in connection with the Czech government’s backing of a US radar base on Czech soil - part of a missile defence system planned by the US in central Europe. Eight projects in different fields, submitted by the Czech Academy of Sciences, made the previous shortlist: fields include nanotechnology, robotics, laser technology, among others. Treaties on the US radar base have yet to be approved by the Czech Parliament.