President Zeman: Withdrawing troops from Afghanistan is a mistake

President Miloš Zeman considers the US decision to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan a mistake, the president’s spokesman, Jiri  Ovčáček, said in a statement for the daily Pravo, adding that Mr. Zeman had always defended the role of allied troops in Afghanistan as an effective way of fighting Islamic terror.

US President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that US and other NATO troops would start pulling out of Afghanistan on May 1 in a withdrawal slated to last until September.

Czech Defence Minister Lubomír Metnar said the Czech Republic respects the decision and will continue to assist the fight against international terrorism in the future.