It's ironic that the Czech Republic formally applied for European Union membership in January 1996. That was the last time a country holding the rotating presidency — Italy — fell into a political vacuum after its government collapsed.

Now the Czech Parliament has indulged in a bit of history-repeating. Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek will be forced to resign since the chamber of deputies passed a motion of no confidence against him.

The chaotic tradition of Italian politics didn't derail the EU back in 1996, but is the Czech situation more serious? The stakes certainly look a lot higher.

Topolanek had been trying to steer two big pieces of foreign policy through Parliament.

The first was ratification of the new EU constitution, Europe's hot potato before the global financial meltdown buried it in Eurocrat in-boxes. The Czech Republic is the only country other than Ireland — due to hold a second referendum in the autumn — that hasn't signed up and the document needs the approval of all 27 members.

Many Czechs in government are deeply hostile to the constitution — or the Lisbon Treaty, as it's known. President Vaclav Klaus has been outspoken in his opposition, and he may end up choosing a new government sympathetic to his point of view.

The other big issue going through Parliament is the very divisive radar bases the United States wants to build on Czech soil as part of its intercontinental missile shield.

With potentially no government in place, who'll be around to explain the limbo over missile defence to President Barack Obama when he visits next month?

True, Topolanek won't jump ship just like that: the Czech constitution provides for the government to hang on as a caretaker until a new one is in place. And it's possible he could form a new government — there are various options.

But his fall is symbolically damaging because, for now, we have a lame duck leader holding the EU presidency who has just lost the faith of his Parliament, and by implication, his people.

Perhaps it reflects a greater disaffection with the way the Czechs been running the EU roadshow.

Here in France, President Nicolas Sarkozy has done little to disguise his feeling that he thinks the Czechs have done too little, too late responding to the European recession.

There's a feeling the Czech administration just isn't on top of things, though it's frequently been steamrollered by the bigger, established players over car-industry bailouts and cracking down on tax havens.

The fact remains the Czech Republic has sent another big wobble through Europe just weeks after the governments of Iceland and Latvia fell.

Many European citizens are justifiably asking what's the point of the EU? And they'll have even more reason to do so if the Lisbon Treaty dies.

Czech mate? Maybe not, but the chess moves played out in Prague are giving the rest of Europe the jitters.