Successful six months at the MoD: 2% GDP, modernisation, cooperation with the U.S., and efficient help to Ukraine

27.6.2023

Successful six months at the MoD: 2% GDP, modernisation, cooperation with the U.S., and efficient help to Ukraine

Author: by editorial staff (ob)

A press conference of the Prime Minister Petr Fiala, Minister of Defence Jana Černochová, and the Chief of the General Staff Lieutenant General Karel Řehka took place at the Ministry of Defence. The conference reviewed the achievements of the last six months, including the approval of the Act on Defence Funding, acquisition of new materiel, transatlantic cooperation, and help to Ukraine.

Spending 2% GDP on defence as the baseline

On Saturday, an act on defence budget shall enter into effect which guarantees a stable long-term funding of the Armed Forces. According to the Minister of Defence, investing 2% GDP in defence is critical for the Armed Forces to allow proper planning of their projects.

“For the last 20-30 years, the Armed Forces have not had any predictable resources. Plans used to fail due to the fact that our presumed resources were in reality much lower. Having appropriations guaranteed by the law is very important for effective planning, and effective spending,” Lieutenant General Karel Řehka appreciated the predictability of resources.

Modernisation picked up the pace

In May, the acquisition contract for 246 Swedish-made armoured vehicles CV90 was signed. At the end of May, the Government commissioned the Defence Minister with the negotiations regarding the possibility to enter a joint acquisition program of the new configuration of German Leopard 2A8 tanks. The Czech Republic will also receive twelve new H-1 Bell helicopters and additional eight as a compensation for the help provided to Ukraine. Apart from that, the Ministry of Defence will acquire 10 additional Caesar howitzers, and MADR radars, which performed successfully at the military acceptance tests and whose implementation is scheduled at 31 July 2023, are up to be delivered. The Defence Ministry also made progress in the negotiations concerning the acquisition of the fifth-generation F-35 fighters.

The modernisation would certainly not be possible without the increase of defence expenditure which amounts to CZK 112 bn. in 2023 which is CZK 23 bn. more than last year. “Modernisation is absolutely crucial and we are demonstrating by concrete steps that we take the modernisation of Czech Armed Forces truly seriously,” emphasized the Prime Minister with regard to the fact, that thanks to the new materiel, the Armed Forces will be more operational, and more compatible with other NATO nations’ armed forces. Last but not least, every acquisition supports domestic and foreign defence industries. “Out of every crown spent on a project for the Czech defence industry, 40 % return back into the state budget. At the same time, every single crown generates three additional crowns in the national economy,” Minister Černochová explained.

According to General Řehka, “the modernisation wave” will take approximately seven years, while the Czech Armed Forces will be integrating the new equipment into their systems and interconnecting it with the existing one. They will also focus on the implementation of new technology. Modernisation does not bring the work of military professionals to an end, on the contrary: “everything must be tried out, introduced into the Armed Forces, implemented, and integrated with the existing equipment. We often have to adjust organisational structures, training and so forth. It is not only the modernisation of equipment, but of mindset and training,” he explained.

Transatlantic cooperation – guarantee of security

The Chamber of Deputies discussed the Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA). It is and agreement that will enable a more intensive practical military cooperation between the Czech Armed Forces and the United States Armed Forces on the Czech territory. This agreement has been signed with more than 24 NATO nations, including Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

The Minister of Defence highlighted that they have succeeded to negotiate the DCA in a record-short time of nine months. She stated that the Czech Republic also provides its know-how to Sweden and Finland. Sweden submitted an application to join NATO after the Russian invasion in Ukraine last year. Finland joined the Alliance in April.

Help to Ukraine as a means of protecting Europe

From January to May 2023, the Czech Republic provided Ukraine with 24 tanks (62 since the outbreak of the war), 76 infantry fighting vehicles (131 since the beginning of the war), and 16 special air defence vehicles which the Czech Republic provided for the first time this year. The delivery also included 57,342 artillery shells and gun howitzers (84,860 since the beginning of the war), 645 anti-tank guided missiles, 144 air defence weapons, plus individual equipment, spare parts, fuel, and CBRN materiel.

According to the Defence Minister, in the inventory of the Czech Armed Forces, there is still equipment that could be provided to the country under attack, as the Chief of Defence of the Czech Armed Forces regularly assesses the possibilities. The Czech Armed Forces will take into consideration the findings from the war in Ukraine for acquisitions and establishment of the new defence strategy that the Defence Ministry plans to finalise by September.

“Our Allies appreciated that we were ready to pass on our older materiel from the Soviet era and that we did it promptly – the USA donated us approximately CZK 2.7 bn. for the modernisation of the Czech Armed Forces and then additional CZK 4.4 bn.,” said Prime Minister Petr Fiala.

The Czech Armed Forces provide Kyiv not only with military materiel, according to Karel Řehka, as training is equally important. “We can be proud of our help regarding its quantity and quality. We are training units up to the battalion level, specialists, and we are sending training teams to Poland. I think we are doing a good job not only because it is morally correct, but it is also important for our defence,” he emphasized.