The Czech Republic should have an ambassador in Moscow, Prime Minister Fiala said. He did not specify a date

Ambassador Vítězslav Pivoňka will end his stay in Russia at the end of May, the government has recalled him. The prime minister noted that he could not say how long the position of ambassador to Russia would be vacant.

“My belief is that the Czech Republic, like our allies, should have diplomatic representation in Moscow at the level of ambassador. However, the timing is a complex matter for several reasons that I do not want to discuss,” said the prime minister.

According to earlier media speculation, diplomat and former deputy at the Ministry of Defense Daniel Koštoval could join Moscow. Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský (Pirates) did not want to comment last week, according to diplomatic customs.

The current chargé d’affaires Jiří Čistecký left the embassy in Moscow at the end of April. Although Pivoňka remained officially the ambassador, he had already been in the Czech Republic for a long time, and it was Čistecký who worked in Moscow as his representative. At the beginning of March, among other things, he attended the funeral of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The embassy is now headed by Jan Ondřejka, the previous second secretary.

Constitutional officials have been debating for a long time whether to have an ambassador in Moscow during the current Russian military aggression in Ukraine. President Petr Pavel stated at the end of March that it was a matter between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government and the Castle. “For a long time, I perceive the importance of having representation at the level of ambassador in Russia as well. The question is whether the situation is suitable for this at this particular time,” the president said at the time.

The Czech Republic has had strained diplomatic relations with Russia since 2021 after the Czech secret services and investigators discovered that Russian secret service agents were involved in the 2014 explosions in ammunition warehouses in Vrbětice in the Zlín region. The number of Russian diplomats in the Czech Republic continued to decrease even after the Russian invasion of Ukraine two years ago. Six diplomats worked at the Russian embassy in Prague last year.