Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš changes social media profile after US Capitol storming
Comments
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has changed his Donald Trump-inspired social media profile after the storming of the US Capitol building in Washington D.C.
Prime Minister Babiš had previously featured a red cap saying "Silné Česko" ("Strong Czechia") on his social media accounts, reminiscent of the US President's "Make America Great Again” red cap.
On a visit to the White House in March 2019, Babiš had professed his support for President Trump and stated that he had a similar plan "to make the Czech Republic great again".
But following the assault on the Capitol building, the Czech Prime Minister joined other European leaders in expressing shock and condemning supporters of Donald Trump.
"What happened in the US is an unacceptable and unprecedented attack on democracy," Babiš said on Twitter.
"I have always condemned violence and chaos like this, the transition of power needs to be smooth and peaceful."
On Thursday, the Prime Minister also changed his longtime social media profile photo to an image of himself wearing a respirator mask with the Czech flag on it.
A spokesperson for Babiš said that the red cap on his social media pages had been inspired by Donald Trump and had been his ANO party’s symbol in the 2019 European Parliament elections.
"After the unprecedented attack on democracy in the United States, which I have unequivocally condemned, I deemed it fit to express my stance also by changing my profile photo".