PM Babiš: Czech evacuation mission in Afghanistan has ended

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) has said that the country’s mission to evacuate Czech officials and service members, Afghan translators and their families from Kabul has now ended, with the arrival on Wednesday evening of a third plane carrying 62 people.

In total, the three Czech air transports have brought 195 people to Prague from Kabul, including members of the Czech Army’s special forces and 170 Afghans, some already with long-term residency here. Among them were also four Afghans whose transport had been requested by Slovakia.

Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhánek (Social Democrats) did not rule out that other Afghans who worked with Czechs there or have ties to this country could be transferred from Kabul with the help of allies, in addition to two Afghans already en route here on a US Air Force plane.

The Czech Army was active in Afghanistan as part of the NATO mission there since 2002. Overall, 11,500 Czech Army service members were posted to the country, with total Defence Ministry expenditure on Afghan missions amounting to roughly CZK 20 billion.