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During a visit to NATO HQ, 5 March, the new Czech Prime Minister, Mirek Topolánek, said his country will send additional forces to Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Topolánek met with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer for talks which focused on NATO’s operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo.

They also discussed the bilateral negotiations between the United States and the Czech Republic on proposals to place part of the US missile defence system in the country.

Test case

NATO's mission in Afghanistan is “a test case for future potential cooperation of international institutions and organizations as far as future conflicts and their resolutions are concerned,” said the Prime Minister.

The Czech Republic is contributing 150 troops to the operation. Prime Minister Topolánek said his country is going to deploy additional troops in the near future, and that it will support the equipping of the Afghan National Army.

The Secretary General praised the Czech Republic for its engagement in NATO’s operations, including in Kosovo. 

He also praised the country for providing the Alliance with important niche capabilities in the area of protection against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear attacks.

Indivisible security

On missile defense, the Secretary General said it was “a bilateral issue to be worked out between the Czech Republic and the United States.”

He reiterated however, that the system being worked on "is not directed" at Russia, and that at the Riga Summit last year, NATO Heads of State and Government agreed to discuss missile defence at NATO.

“In the framework of the indivisibility security, missile defence is also certainly an item which should be prominent on the NATO agenda,” said the Secretary General.

Mr. De Hoop Scheffer also said he discussed the downward trend in the Czech Republic’s defence spending with the Prime Minister, saying that it must be stopped.

This was Prime Minister Topolánek’s first visit to NATO Headquarters since his appointment in January this year.