Czech President Petr Pavel officially appointed billionaire Andrej Babis, leader of the populist ANO party, as the new prime minister on December 8.
This is reported by the Czech media CT24.
In October, Babisʼ party won parliamentary elections. The president is expected to appoint the remaining members of the government within a week.
In his speech, the new Czech Prime Minister promised to "fight for the interests of citizens not only at home, but also around the world".
"I will do everything possible to fulfill the governmentʼs program statement, and everything possible to make the Czech Republic the best place to live on our entire planet," he said.
Babis (71) was already the Czech Republicʼs prime minister from 2017 to 2021. Now he has become the oldest politician to ever lead the countryʼs government.
The position of Babis and his party on Ukraine
In July, Andrej Babis threatened that if his political force won the elections, the government would cancel the initiative to supply ammunition to Ukraine.
He is also considering joining the "anti-Ukrainian alliance" that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is trying to create with Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
It was reported that the leader of the ANO party is already negotiating the formation of a government with openly pro-Russian forces — the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and the right-wing populist Motorists for Their Own Party.
ANO advocates an “immediate end to the war” between Ukraine and Russia and believes that military support only prolongs the conflict. The party is convinced that without Western help, Kyiv would have agreed to “peace” sooner.
ANO is also skeptical about Ukrainian refugees — Andrej Babis has repeatedly questioned whether it is worth continuing temporary protection and financial support for them.
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