From 12 August 2010 to 10 April 2013, he was the Director of the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes.

[2][3][4] From January, 2014, to December, 2017, he was Czech Minister of Culture in Bohuslav Sobotka's Cabinet.

[5] In March 2016 preceding state visit of the President of PRC Xi Jinping, he initiated a minute of silence for 1959 Tibetan uprising in Chamber of Deputies followed by the diplomatic note from the Chinese Ambassador.

In May 2016 he caused turmoil due to his visit of congress of the Sudetendeutsche Landsmannschaft as first minister in history of the Government of the Czech Republic.

[6] In October 2016, he caused an international incident by officially welcoming the 14th Dalai Lama after the signing of Czech-Chinese business contracts which do not allow that.