DIVICE /EPA
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
The new Czech prime minister could also be the new “friend” of Hungary and Slovakia, which have undermined Kiev since the beginning of the war. He has already shown signs of this.
Czech President Petr Pavel has just sworn in a new right-wing coalition government, led by the populist billionaire Andrej Babiš.
The appointment puts an end to several weeks of uncertainty over the head of state’s willingness to confirm Babiš as prime minister and represents a political change that is almost certainly dangerous for Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukraine.
This is because the transition to Babiš should bring the Czech Republic closer to the positions of countries such as Hungary and Slovakia in terms of support for Kiev.
Pavel announced that he would move forward with the nomination after Babiš committed to selling his stake in Agrofert, an agricultural conglomerate and one of the largest beneficiaries of European subsidies. Babiš, who previously headed the government between 2017 and 2021, returns to power at a time when the European Union is looking to finance assistance to war-ravaged Ukraine.
In recent days, the newspaper points out, the new prime minister has taken a critical stance regarding a European proposal to support Kiev through a loan based on frozen Russian assets.
“The European Commission must find other ways to finance Ukraine“, announced Babiš on Saturday, on Facebook. “Our coffers are empty and we need every crown [unidade monetária checa] we have for our citizens.”
Babiš’s stance reopens old tensions with Brussels. During his previous term, he was the target of criticism and political disputes due to alleged conflicts of interest linked to Agrofert. Since then, the leader of the Alliance of Discontented Citizens (ANO) has strengthened his position on the right, joining the Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament and threatening to cancel a Prague-led munitions initiative that has already delivered more than a million rounds to Ukraine.
Babiš won the legislative elections in October and formed a coalition with the far-right party Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and the right-wing Motorists. The three partners share the intention of halt climate measures — including the ETS2 emissions trading system — and reject Brussels’ plans to ban combustion engines.
In the distribution of portfolios, ANO has nine ministries, including the head of government; the Motorists, four and the SPD three.
In his inauguration speech, Petr Pavel promised to closely monitor the way in which the new executive protects democratic institutions, pointing in particular to the media, justice and security forces. The President also mentioned concerns about press freedom, given plans to reform public broadcasting that envisage ending license fees and financing the service through the State Budget.
Pavel also highlighted that the country’s main economic and security guarantees depend on its membership in the EU and NATO.
