Czech Republic: EU-critical coalition agreement signed

A month after the parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic, the formation of a government is progressing. The right-wing populist ANO movement of billionaire Andrej Babiš signed a coalition agreement in Prague with two right-wing parties. Babiš, who previously served as prime minister from 2017 to 2021, is joining forces with the climate-skeptic, right-wing populist Motorists' Party (Motoriste) and the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy Party (SPD). Together, the three parties hold 108 of the 200 seats in the Prague Chamber of Deputies.

The president will now decide

Now it's up to President and former NATO General Petr Pavel. In the Czech Republic, the prime minister isn't elected by parliament. The president appoints the head of government, who then has to win the confidence of the members of parliament. When these steps will take place is still unclear, but possibly not until December.

In their program, the prospective future partners promise to pursue national interests. "We want a different Europe," it states.

They strive for "zero tolerance" regarding illegal migration. They reject the euro and want to enshrine the retention of the Czech koruna in the constitution. Organizations financed from abroad will be required to disclose their donors.

Furthermore, the designated governing coalition intends to lower energy prices, abolish the broadcasting fee, and reintroduce retirement at age 65.

Babis wants to end aid to Ukraine

An ANO-led cabinet would replace a center-right government that had focused on reducing the budget deficit and providing comprehensive support to Ukraine, which was under attack by Russia . Babis has announced plans to end the Czech-led, European-funded program supplying munitions to Kyiv. He also intends to eliminate all aid to Ukraine from the Czech budget, stating that he plans to use the money for Czech citizens instead.

An addendum to the coalition agreement stipulates that ANO will provide the prime minister and eight cabinet members. It emerged as the strongest party in the election at the beginning of October with 34.5 percent of the vote. The right-wing populist motorists' party is slated to take over the foreign ministry as well as the ministries for the environment, culture, and sport.

The far-right SPD is slated to head the Ministry of Defense, among other positions – even though the party campaigned on a platform of holding referendums on leaving NATO and the European Union . However, party leader Tomio Okamura was unable to push through this demand during coalition negotiations.

se/pgr (rtr, dpa, ard)