Czech Republic changes course: what Ukraine should expect from the Babiš government

On January 15, the lower house of the Czech parliament passed a vote of confidence in the new right-wing populist government headed by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Reuters reports.

As a reminder, Babiš came to power with an agenda of reducing support for Ukraine, opposing EU environmental policies, and suspending the previous administration's austerity policies. He won the election in October.

There is no longer any need for election campaigning. PHOTO: EPA/UPG

Difficulties in forming a government

The new-old Czech prime minister (who served from 2017 to 2021) calls himself a Trumpist and is an ally of Hungarian President Viktor Orban and the far-right in the European Parliament, and his ANO party formed a ruling coalition with the pro-Russian far-right SPD party and another right-wing Czech party (the Motorists). All 108 MPs from the three coalition parties supported the government. 91 opposition MPs voted against. The vote took place after 21:00. The MPs discussed the vote of confidence for a record 26 hours of pure time.

In the ruling coalition, the only issue before the vote was the position of some SPD MPs who were unhappy that the government - and the prime minister personally - had finally agreed to continue the Czech initiative on ammunition for Ukraine, although they had opposed it before the election. However, the prime minister managed to convince his partners. The fact is that Babiš changed his mind after participating in the Coalition of the Resolute summit in Paris. He added that he did not like all the points of the declaration on multinational forces signed in the French capital, and that Czech soldiers should not be counted on to participate in the peacekeeping contingent.

Andrej Babiš. PHOTO: REUTERS/Yves Herman

The politician claims that the ammunition initiative will continue, and the Czech Republic will act as its coordinator, but the government refuses to help Ukraine at the expense of taxpayers, and also demands transparency and the absence of a corruption component. In fact, it wants NATO to continue to finance the project.

At the same time, opposition MPs criticized the government for its plans to limit the retirement age to 65, for the moral qualities of some cabinet members, and for political inconsistency.

"This is not a government of responsibility, but a government of political waste, which is heading straight for the wall," said one of the MPs.

Reduction of assistance to Ukraine from the Czech Republic

The return of Babiš, who was appointed prime minister by Czech President Petr Pavel as the winner of the October elections on December 9 last year, and his new alliance with two newcomers to the government are expected to significantly redefine the country's foreign and domestic policies.

In order to appoint Babiš as prime minister, the Czech president repeatedly called on the ANO leader to announce how he was going to resolve this conflict of interest. Babiš then promised that he would put Agrofert under the management of a trust and thus never have anything to do with the company again. After that, Pavel agreed to appoint him prime minister of the Czech Republic. Agrofert received subsidies from the EU, which eventually led to a lengthy legal battle in which the ANO leader was convicted and acquitted.

For Ukraine, Babiš's return may bring some difficulties. In December, the Czech Republic joined Slovakia and Hungary in refusing to pay for the EU loan to Ukraine, which was agreed upon at the first EU summit after the politician's return to power. As noted above, the Czech Republic will also stop contributing to the Prague-led ammunition program for Ukraine, although Babiš will continue to coordinate the initiative, which is funded largely by donations from countries such as Germany. The previous government launched this program, which has become a key supply tool for Kyiv. It brings donors together with Czech defense officials, traders, and arms manufacturers who buy ammunition for Ukraine around the world to reduce its disadvantage on the battlefield.

For Trump against the EU

Also in foreign policy, opposition parties have been pushing for the government to join European countries in supporting Greenland, which US President Donald Trump is seeking to take from Denmark. The Babiš government has stated the need for a dialog on this issue.

Володимир Шкаєв