Fiala began his statement by commemorating the fallen. “You have to fight for freedom, independence. We must think gratefully of those who gave their lives in the fight against Nazi Germany,” he said.
He then related the historical events to today. “It reminds us that the defeat of brutal ideology and brute force will not come alone. That there is a need to fight, and if it were not for the determination of the allies, Nazi Germany would not have been defeated,” the Prime Minister declared. According to him, we cannot get peace by waiting for it, we have to do something for it.
“There is a brutal war conflict not far from us. Every day we can see footage that reminds us of scenes from World War II,” said Fiala. “The conflict can end only if the aggressor is defeated, and all of us will do what we can to make Ukraine successful in this defensive struggle,” added the prime minister.
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Homemade
He also recalled Czech membership in NATO, this year marks 25 years since the Czech Republic joined this organization. “We are not a black passenger, but an active player. We have increased the resources we put into defense,” the prime minister said, adding that this would ensure peace and security for us in the future. According to the prime minister, people who downplay the Russian threat are doing the Czech Republic a disservice.
Senate President Miloš Vystrčil (ODS) followed up on the Prime Minister. “At the same time, we should also remember what came after we gained our freedom. In the end, we became part of a community that was dictatorial, anti-human, was not fair and did not respect basic human rights and freedoms,” declared Vystrčil, adding that it is necessary to support countries like Ukraine today, which cannot live in freedom and security because of aggression.
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Foreign
The Speaker of the House of Representatives Markéta Pekarová Adamová (TOP 09) then said that the conflict in Ukraine can be compared to the war in other countries in terms of brutality. “We believe that one day even Ukrainians will be able to remember their victory day,” said the president.
Řehka: When evil gives way, it always ends in tragedy
Defense Minister Jana Černochová (ODS) then declared: “None of us thought, not even in our wildest dreams, that the European continent would experience a war that was unleashed by one of the countries that participated in the liberation at the time, it was the Soviet Union.”
Chief of the General Staff Karel Řehka also related history to the present. “It’s a reminder of the lesson: when evil recedes, we are insensitive and stand aside, it always ends in tragedy, we see that in Ukraine today,” he said.
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Karel Havlíček (ANO) also participated in the memorial service in Vítkov. He also spoke in response to journalists about Ukraine.
“We have always supported Ukraine, whether it was economic support, military support or training of Ukrainian soldiers in the Czech Republic,” he said. He added, however, that the situation on the battlefield is not developing well for Ukraine, it suffers from a lack of soldiers. According to Havlíček, we should do everything to end the war, but at the same time stand up for Ukraine.
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Europe
