22 April 2026 07:48 UTC · NATO · NATO News · Source · Email X Link

NATO reports Czech Republic to send additional troops

Key points

Czech PM Topolánek says additional troops to Afghanistan
NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer notes missile defence is bilateral and not directed at Russia

TL;DR

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek met NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer at NATO HQ and said the Czech Republic will deploy additional troops to Afghanistan beyond its current 150-troop contribution.
They discussed NATO operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo, US-Czech negotiations on missile defence, and defence spending; the Secretary General said missile defence is a bilateral issue between the Czech Republic and the United States and is not directed at Russia.
The Secretary General praised the Czech Republic for its engagement in NATO operations and for providing niche CBRN protection capabilities, and urged that the downward trend in Czech defence spending must be stopped.

Original text

Create an account Reset password Already have an account? Log in From now on you can download videos from our website If you would also like to subscribe to the newsletter and receive our latest updates, click on the button below. Enter the email address you registered with and we will send you a code to reset your password. The password must be at least 12 characters long, no spaces, include upper/lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. Click the button to return to the page you were on and log in with your new password. 05 March 2007 1 MIN READ 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. 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. 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. Link was copied to clipboard

NATO reports Czech Republic to send additional troops

Key points

TL;DR

Key tags

Topics

Keywords

Stats

People

Organizations

Places

Countries

Regions