CZECH REPUBLIC: Comment – Take the money and run, Pernod’s bitters battle
As the privatization of Jan Becher boils over, the Czech government is torn between gaining political capital or reducing the budget deficit. The Czech government may be playing hardball with Pernod Ricard or as it has been often cited in the local press - settling political scores with those involved in the distillery's 1997 privatization. But as Czech finance minister Jiri Rusnok decides on his next steps, he may be under pressure from the budget deficit.