Joint meeting of Czech and Ukrainian governments in Prague begins

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and 10 members of his cabinet arrived in Prague on Tuesday for a joint meeting of the Czech and Ukrainian governments.

The two governments intend to sign five memoranda on departmental cooperation in the areas of energy, industry, trade, healthcare and sport, as well as two defence agreements and an updated police cooperation contract between the countries' interior ministers. In bilateral meetings between ministers from the relevant departments, the government delegates plan to discuss a variety of topics including defence, transport, and Ukraine's post-war reconstruction.

In his opening speech before the start of the intergovernmental meeting, the Ukrainian PM said that Czechia was a key partner for Ukraine, and that the solidarity of both the Czech people and the government had been apparent since the first days of the Russian invasion. He added that the joint consultations should consolidate and deepen mutual relations between the two countries. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said that Czechia would continue to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia and in its efforts to join the EU and NATO.