Big figures in Mr Klaus's own party, such as the finance minister, Ivan Pilip, had already begun edging away from the prime minister.

ECONOMIST: Is a Czech era ending?

Levels of trust are so abysmally low that some big governments would basically like something like a Cold War spy swap, with Mr Klaus and a pen poised at one end of a foggy bridge, and the council conclusions ready for approval at the other.

ECONOMIST: European politics

Mr Klaus, prime minister until ousted last autumn, will become parliament's speaker, thereby having a big say in the legislative agenda, while agreeing in general to back Mr Zeman, his dedicated opponent of the past few years.

ECONOMIST: Czech Republic