Britain Wants to Expand Military Aid to Ukraine. Czechia Offers to Provide Items Needed for Defense

The Czech defence minister has turned to her Ukrainian counterparts to compile a list of the weapons needed.

London is open to providing Ukraine with even more weapons to neutralize a possible Russian invasion. This was stated by UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace in an interview with Daily Mail.

Ben Wallace
UK Defence Secretary

I will keep the question of sending more defensive weapons to Ukraine under review. I do not rule out anything that would help Ukraine ensure its self-defence.

This is because Russia has gathered some 127,000 troops on the border with Ukraine, along with tanks and other weapons, possibly preparing for an invasion.

Ben Wallace
UK Defence Secretary

Britain is determined to support Ukraine, its sovereignty and our shared interests. We have been helping them build defence capability for eight years and have decided to step up this assistance against the backdrop of Russian aggression. Britain stands by its allies.

Meanwhile, the publication writes that the day before, the Russian embassy in London accused Britain of  “fueling tension in the region”  due to supplying weapons to Ukraine.

Overnight, Russia accused Britain of fueling tension in the region by deploying weapons. It said this would only  “fuel the crisis”.

The possibility that Britain may send more weapons will be welcomed by the Ukrainian government, which called the supply of NLAW anti-tank systems  “the most necessary first step”.

Military Aid from Czechia

The new Czech government wants to help Ukraine amid a possible escalation by Russia and intends to send or sell military equipment to Kyiv. This was stated by Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová in an interview with Hospodarske noviny.

According to the minister, arms or ammunition supplies should be coordinated with the Visegrad Group countries or with Germany, Austria or the Baltic states.

Jana Černochová
Czech Defence Minister

Czechia is historically, politically and as an ally on the side of Ukraine. If Ukraine needs help, we will try to help. Ukraine must say what exactly it needs.

The minister noted that the government coalition of five parties has a consensus on this issue.

Jana Černochová
Czech Defence Minister

I cannot speak on behalf of other ministers, but I consult a lot with Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, and our views on helping Ukraine coincide.

The defence minister is now negotiating with Czech Army commander-in-chief Aleš Opata about Ukraine's possible needs. In addition, the head of Ukraine's armed forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, is expected to arrive in Prague in the near future.

At the same time, the Czech army will send six special forces soldiers to Ukraine in late February or early March for joint exercises “Silver Sabre 2022”. The exercises are being held under NATO's plan for developing the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Just a few hours later, Czech broadcaster Televize Seznam reported that Czechia will send artillery ammunition to Ukraine, and the Czech government must approve this decision next week.

“Czechia will support Ukraine amid the escalation of the situation with Russia. It will send a batch of grenades,” — the broadcaster said in its report.

Television editor Jan Richter said Czechia will support Ukraine by supplying artillery ammunition. A representative of the Czech Ministry of Defence confirmed this information to the broadcaster.