Czech Republic, Austria to exchange tracts of borderland

The Czech Republic and Austria will exchange areas of land adding up to more than 40,000 square metres along their common border, under a bill passed in the lower house on Wednesday. The redrawing of the Czech-Austrian border is to allow for rivers gradually changing their course and will also improve access to private property. The bill does not account for any transfers of population. The Czech Republic has been locked in dispute with Poland for 45 years over similar territorial changes on the Czech-Polish border.