Czech Republic

Ukraine's national football team has risen to 22nd place in the FIFA rankings after qualifying for Euro 2024 with victories over Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland.

In order to effectively protect the rights of servicemen and their families, Ukraine has established the Central Department for the Protection of the Rights of Servicemen, an institution of a military ombudsman.

The Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine outside the EU needs more funding, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said, calling on allies to provide more money to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression.

In 2023, more than 7,000 departure orders were issued to Russian citizens, 34% more than in 2022, with Germany expelling the most Russians - 2,000.

44 countries support the creation of a special tribunal to investigate and prosecute the crime of Russian aggression against Ukraine, and the Netherlands has offered to host it.

Three individuals, including the head of a strategic state-owned enterprise, its beneficial owner and an accountant, were charged with causing UAH 3. 2 million in losses through a scheme involving overpriced contracts and falsification of documents.

Germany will provide Ukraine with 180,000 artillery shells worth €576 million as part of the Czech ammunition initiative.

Greece plans to sell 150 million euros worth of inactive and usable ammunition from its army stockpile to the Czech Republic, which will then send it to Ukraine.

255 Ukrainian children were removed from their parents by local social services abroad as of December 31, 2023, with the worst situation in Germany (71 cases), Poland (33), Italy (25), Czech Republic (24) and Sweden (17).

A mobile office of the State Enterprise "Document" has started operating in Munich, Germany, allowing Ukrainians abroad to obtain passport documents.

NATO Allies reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening Ukraine's defense against Russia's escalating air strikes at a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council.

UNESCO has approved an emergency assistance program to monitor and address the environmental damage caused by Russia's destruction of the Kakhovka Dam in Ukraine, mobilizing more than $66 million to restore Ukraine's cultural heritage, education and science affected by Russian aggression.

A new international rail route connecting Prague, Kosice, and Chop has been launched, with daily rail service operated by Ukrzaliznytsia and RegioJet, offering a 13-hour journey between Prague and Chop.

Ukraine is forced to engage intermediaries to purchase ammunition on the world market. However, due to the high competition for ammunition must be accepted as a "necessary element of the game".

Ukraine received 12 modular bridge systems worth more than $15 million from the World Bank to replace bridges destroyed during the fighting.

The European Commission is preparing to impose tariffs on grain products from Belarus and Russia to prevent Russian grain from destabilizing the European market, stop Russia from profiting from exports to the EU, and ensure that illegally exported stolen Ukrainian grain does not enter the EU market.

Slovakia and Hungary refused to participate in financing a Czech initiative to purchase 800,000 artillery shells for Ukraine, citing their opposition to the provision of lethal weapons and their belief that the conflict has no military solution.

Poland will make a material, technical and financial contribution to the Czech plan to increase the supply of ammunition to Ukraine from outside the European Union.

Five European countries-Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and the Czech Republic - have called on the European Commission to ban grain imports from Russia and Belarus to prevent Russia from financing the war against Ukraine.

The Czech Republic will deliver the first batch of artillery shells to Ukraine by June as part of a joint project with Germany to supply about 180,000 155-mm and 152-mm ammunition units by the end of the year.

Ukraine expects to receive the first batch of shells under the Czech initiative to supply one million shells in April, which will provide critical ammunition to the battlefield.

Lithuania allocates 35 million euros for the purchase of ammunition for Ukraine as part of the EU's ammunition initiative.

Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, believes that Europe should create its own version of the Israeli Iron Dome air defense system.

33 countries have joined the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, led by Ukraine and Canada, which aims to multiply efforts to return Ukrainian children deported to Russia.

The EU Council has decided to allocate an additional 5 billion euros for military support to Ukraine under the European Peace Fund, the Foreign Ministry reports.

Ukraine's armed forces repelled 12 Russian attacks in the south, while Russian forces applied pressure using numerous attack drones and fired at least 14 bombs and missiles in Zaporizhzhia.

With American aid blocked, Western production slowing down, and stockpiles in Ukraine dwindling, the Czech Republic is using Cold War contacts to purchase ammunition for Ukraine from countries allied with Moscow.

Czech President Petr Pavel believes that a compromise between Ukraine and Russia to end the conflict is not yet possible, but the time may come when both sides realize that continuing the war means only new costs, suffering and losses without hope of success.

Greece will supply Ukraine with weapons and ammunition purchased in the Czech Republic and transferred directly to Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy discussed Ukraine's priority needs for armored vehicles, artillery, and air defense with German Chancellor Scholz in a phone call, thanking Germany for its continued support.