PRAGUE (AFP) - 
 
 Czech President Milos Zeman, known for showing hostility towards journalists, taunted them on Thursday, saying he regretted making them look like "little idiots" during a bizarre event in which he set a huge pair of red underpants on fire. 
 
 The visibly frail 73-year-old Zeman abruptly announced a press conference on Thursday afternoon, raising speculation about his possible resignation. 
 
 "I apologise to the journalists whose intelligence I tested, unsuccessfully as always," Zeman told reporters gathered for the briefing the gardens of Prague Castle where he was flanked by his spokesman, assistants and several firemen. 
 
 To their amazement, Zeman then proceeded to burn a huge pair of red underpants in a fire pit, assisted by two firemen dressed in full gear. 
 
 "The time of underwear in politics is over," Zeman declared. "I'm sorry to make you look like little idiots, you really don't deserve it," he told reporters before leaving in his car. 
 
 The red underpants, measuring roughly one square metre, resembled a pair that Czech pranksters had flown from a flag pole atop the presidential palace in 2015 in protest against Zeman. 
 
 The pranksters said that the red colour of their boxer-short style protest flag symbolised the unhealthily close link they believed Zeman, a former communist, had with China and Russia. 
 
 Staunchly pro-Russian and pro-Chinese, Zeman once dubbed journalists "manure" and "superficial" before telling Russian President Vladimir Putin in China in May 2017 that "journalists should be liquidated". 
 
 He also showed up at a press conference in October 2017 with a toy Kalashnikov in his hand labelled "for journalists". 
 
 Zeman narrowly won a second consecutive term in January elections, beating his pro-European liberal rival Jiri Drahos in a knife-edge run-off that underscored deep divisions in the EU and NATO state. 
 
 Zeman's stunt drew a barrage of criticism on Thursday, with Jiri Pospisil, leader of the right-wing TOP 09 party, exclaiming "let us wake up from this nightmare!" 
 
 Zeman's health has come under heavy scrutiny in recent months. 
 
 He walks with a cane, is diabetic and is a former heavy drinker and smoker. 
 
 © 2018 AFP 

 PRAGUE (AP) — A fiery stunt by the Czech president has really stunned journalists this time. 
 
 Milos Zeman announced a press conference for Thursday, but instead of briefing reporters, he had two firefighters in protective gear burn a huge pair of red underpants in front of them. 
 
 Czech media said the boxer shorts in question had been hoisted by activists in 2015, replacing the official presidential flag on Prague Castle. The red underwear was meant to symbolize Zeman's close relationships with Russia and China and has since become a symbol for criticism of his presidency. 
 
 After the incineration, Zeman told reporters: "I'm sorry to make you look like little idiots, you really don't deserve it." 
 
 Zeman, 72, has often clashed with the press, even waving a fake machine gun at reporters last year.
– A fiery stunt by the Czech president has really stunned journalists this time. Milos Zeman announced a press conference for Thursday, but instead of briefing reporters, he had two firefighters in protective gear help him burn a huge pair of red underpants in front of them, the AP reports. Per AFP, a "visibly frail" Zeman did the deed on a 10-foot-by-10-foot pair of boxer shorts, and he had some words after the incineration. "The time of underwear in politics is over," he declared to reporters. "I'm sorry to make you look like little idiots, you really don't deserve it." Czech media said the boxer shorts in question resembled a pair that had been hoisted by activists in 2015, replacing the official presidential flag on Prague Castle. The red underwear was meant to symbolize Zeman's close relationships with Russia and China and has since become a symbol for criticism of his presidency. Zeman, 73, has often clashed with the press, even waving a fake machine gun at reporters last year.