The Czech Republic has secured funding to continue delivering artillery ammunition to Ukraine into next year, but the future of this initiative may depend on the results of the upcoming parliamentary elections in October.

Czech program closes Ukraine’s artillery gap

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský told Bloomberg in an interview that the Czech-led program to source heavy ammunition for Ukraine, funded by a coalition of 11 countries, has significantly changed the situation on the battlefield. According to Lipavský, Ukrainian forces, who at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 had only one artillery round for every ten fired by Russia, now have one for every two.

The Czech Republic has committed to delivering 1.8 million shells to Ukraine this year under this program. Lipavský described the effort as a “game changer” and emphasized that it plays a vital role as US support weakens and efforts by President Donald Trump to end the war remain stalled.

Political future of the ammunition effort uncertain

Despite the success and international backing of the initiative, Lipavský warned that its continuation hinges on maintaining political support after the Czech parliamentary elections scheduled for 3–4 October 2025.

“We’ve secured funding for next year,” said Lipavský, adding that the Czech Republic has also trained 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers and intends to begin training Ukrainian pilots. “What is absolutely crucial is to preserve political support for the ammunition initiative after Czech parliamentary elections,” he said.

Polls indicate that the current center-right government led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala is trailing behind former Prime Minister and billionaire Andrej Babiš, who is leading ahead of the vote.

Babiš has openly criticized supplying arms to Ukraine and hosting Ukrainian war refugees.

Far-right ties and NATO defense spending on agenda

Lipavský accused Babis of “far-right populism,” referencing the ex-premier’s alignment with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and France’s National Rally in forming a nationalist bloc in the European Parliament last year.