Czech President Milos Zeman said that Czech authorities had previously cooperated with the Russian Federation, as his country’s economy needed cheap energy. Zeman told this to the TV channel CNN Prima NEWS.
According to the politician, the Czech Republic largely copied the policy of the Federal Republic of Germany. Zeman pointed out that Germany supports the construction of the Nord Stream-2 natural gas pipeline for the sake of the gas coming from Russia, and that Chancellor Angela Merkel has visited Moscow many times for this purpose.
“It made sense then – I emphasize, then – economic cooperation with Russia,” he said.
Milos Zeman earlier in his Christmas speech to the citizens connected its former position on the supply of cheap energy raw materials to the republic and on good relations with the Russian Federation.
On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he had decided to organize a special military operation in Ukraine in response to a request for help from the heads of the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics (LPR and DPR).
The decision to run the operation became the justification for new sanctions against Russia by the United States and its allies.