Nine countries have withdrawn from the coalition supplying ammunition to Ukraine — FT
The number of countries contributing financially to the Czech initiative to procure artillery ammunition for Ukraine has halved following Andrej Babiš’s return to the post of Czech Prime Minister.
The Financial Times reports this.
According to Czech President Petr Pavel, only nine countries are currently funding this large-scale project, compared to 18 last year.
This reduction in support is linked to the new Czech prime minister’s pledge not to force citizens to pay for weapons for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
“The initiative is still in effect, but the new challenge is that only about nine member states are making financial contributions. This initiative provided up to 50 percent of all large-caliber ammunition for the Ukrainians, so in that sense, it cannot easily be replaced by something else,” Petr Pavel emphasized in an interview with the international publication Financial Times.
According to journalists, since 2024, the Czech government has successfully organized the delivery of over 4 million large-caliber artillery shells to Kyiv.
These deliveries have significantly helped replenish the depleted ammunition stocks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and supported the country’s national defense against a full-scale Russian invasion.
The Czech head of state noted that future funding for this program will be one of the key topics for discussion during the July NATO summit in Ankara.
The Office of the President of the Czech Republic has so far declined to disclose a specific list of countries that have recently officially withdrawn from the defense initiative.
According to a Western military official, Germany and some Northern European countries remain among the participants, but “some countries now find it strange to pay for something that does not even have proper support from the ruling politicians of the lead country.”
Meanwhile, Andrej Babiš himself stated that his cabinet gives unquestionable priority to using limited state budget funds for the needs of Czech citizens.
Czech households are currently facing serious difficulties due to high energy bills, which have worsened following the conflict with Iran.
“We don’t have the money, so we receive funds from other countries and then supply [ammunition],” said the Czech prime minister.
During his election campaign, he repeatedly threatened to completely halt the program due to an alleged lack of financial transparency and excessive benefits for the Czechoslovak Group (CSG) arms holding company.
CSG served as the Czech government’s main corporate partner in the procurement and refurbishment of artillery shells from non-NATO countries.
The holding’s owner and CEO, Michal Strnad, noted that Babiš’s administration had left the initiative in limbo for several months due to legal disagreements.
At the same time, he believes it is too early to predict a reduction in the amount of ammunition for Kyiv, as European donors have begun using alternative direct supply channels.
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