Final Word from Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Slovak PM Robert Fico said on Fri. after meeting in Prague with his Czech counterpart, Petr Fiala, that their two countries have no dispute with regard to Ukraine in terms of the values involved and that Slovakia has stated clearly that Russia's use of military force is a violation of international law. Where the two sides differ is on supplying arms. Fico's government doesn't plan to send any more weapons, whereas Fiala said that he's convinced that it continues to make sense because Ukraine needs our help in its brave struggle. Yet figures from the defense ministry show that the CR only donated arms to Ukraine with a residual value of Kč 1.2bn through Oct. 10, despite defense budgets of hundreds of billions of crowns over the past 20 years. Two days after Fiala and Fico met, Defense Min. Jana Černochová said on Czech TV that the CR doesn't have much left to give Ukraine. She said nothing about scouring the earth to find whatever might help Ukraine in its brave struggle. The CR and Slovakia in fact have a very similar policy on supplying weapons to Ukraine; Fico is merely being more honest about it in public. [ Czech Republic Television OVM ODS minister ]