The number of countries participating in the initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine has halved since Andrej Babis became Prime Minister of the Czech Republic.
Czech President Petr Pavel told the Financial Times about this.
According to him, only nine countries are currently funding the initiative, compared to 18 last year. The initiative continues to operate, but only these nine countries are contributing, which raises concerns about the future of the initiative.
As part of the Czech initiative, Ukraine has received over four million large-caliber artillery shells since 2024. According to Pavel, the program covers up to 50% of all Ukraineʼs needs for large-caliber ammunition, and there is currently no alternative to it.
The Czech President believes that the future of the initiative should be among the issues discussed at the July NATO summit in Ankara.
The Czech president’s office did not name specific countries that had withdrawn from the initiative, but an unnamed Western military official told the FT that Germany and some Scandinavian countries remained among the participants.
According to the official, the reduction in the number of participants is due to the fact that "some countries now find it strange to pay for something that does not even have the proper support of the leading politicians of the leading country".
The current Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis threatened to cancel the Ukraine project during the election campaign, criticizing it for an alleged lack of transparency in the use of funds.
In a comment to FT, the Czech prime minister explained that his government is prioritizing state funding for Czech citizens amid householdsʼ difficulties paying their electricity bills following the conflict in Iran, rather than supporting Ukraine.
CEO of the Czechoslovak Group Michal Strnad which produces ammunition for the initiative, said the initiative “is not dead, it is still working, but a little slowly”. He said it was too early to predict whether Kyiv would eventually receive fewer shells, as some countries could now use alternative supply channels.
“Some donor countries have actually said that they are no longer interested in funding [the initiative], so they are buying directly from us or from other suppliers,” Strnad said.
What is known about the Czech initiative?
In February 2024, the Czech Republic reported that it had found a way to obtain 800 000 shells for Ukraine, but they would have to be bought back. The country called on allies to contribute money to the initiative, which was supported by Canada, Finland, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, France, Britain, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Lithuania, and others.
Already in March, the Czech Foreign Ministry reported that the number of shells under the initiative could be more — from 1.5 million. The Czech Republic contracted the first 180 thousand ammunition in mid-April.
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