Ivan David, a Czech psychiatrist and former Minister of Health, has been in the spotlight recently due to his allegedly pro-Russian stance. While David has denied any such affiliation, his statements and social media posts suggest otherwise. In this article, we will examine David’s career and political views, as well as his controversial statements and social media activity.
Career Overview
Ivan David was born on 24 September 1952 in Czechoslovakia. He completed his education at the Prague High School and the Faculty of General Medicine of Charles University. Following his studies, he worked as a psychiatrist and later became the director of the Psychiatric Hospital of Bohnice, a position he held until April 2008. During his career, he also served as a Member of Parliament for the Social Democrats from 1998 to 2002 and held the position of Minister of Health from 1998 to 1999. In the 2019 European Parliament election in the Czech Republic, he led the Freedom and Direct Democracy party.
Pro-Russian Stance
David has denied being pro-Russian, but his statements and social media posts suggest otherwise. One such statement that drew criticism was his denial of Russia’s attack on a shopping center full of people. According to David, the department store that was hit by the Russian missile was closed and served as a weapons warehouse. This claim was not even shared by Moscow itself but only among Russian separatists in the internationally unrecognised Luhansk People’s Republic. Despite footage from the scene, witness statements, recordings from security cameras, and information from the centre’s operator, David insisted that the shopping centre was closed.
David’s social media posts also reveal his pro-Russian leanings. He shared an article by Seymour Hershe, a well-known journalist who accused the Biden administration of being responsible for the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. The writer expressed the opinion that the story had been largely ignored by the media in the United States, despite having been covered in Germany and other parts of Western Europe. David also retweeted a post that depicted Nazi Party members taking important positions after WW2.
Views on European Industry
David has been critical of the EU’s recycling and steel industry practices. He argues that while the European Commission claims that the EU has an advanced recycling system, it falls behind neighbouring Switzerland in terms of waste recycling. He suggests that recycling in the EU largely relies on citizens and businesses sorting waste, and the waste is often sent outside of the EU for disposal, with hundreds of millions of tons of PET bottles previously being sent to China.
He is also critical of the EU’s steel industry, arguing that it is struggling due to high energy prices, anti-Russian sanctions, and high prices for emission permits. He suggests that the Green Deal’s regulations make it practically impossible to carry out the entire process of iron and steel production and processing on EU territory.
David argues that while it is theoretically possible to replace coal with hydrogen in smelting iron, it is six times more expensive, and producing the required amount of hydrogen would require eight times more electricity than is currently generated by wind power in the EU. He believes that the EU’s reliance on renewable energy is misguided and that the union should focus on nuclear energy as a viable alternative.
Conclusion
Ivan David, a Czech psychiatrist and former Minister of Health, has been accused of having pro-Russian leanings. While he denies these accusations, his statements and social media posts suggest otherwise. David has been critical of the EU’s recycling and steel industry practices and believes that the union should focus on nuclear energy as a viable alternative. Despite his controversial views, David remains a prominent figure in Czech politics and is sure to continue to be a topic of discussion in the future.
