Twenty Czechs were granted permission to fight for Ukraine this year

Since taking office in March, President Petr Pavel received requests from 76 Czechs to be allowed to fight for Ukraine in its war against Russia. He granted special permission to do so to 20 people, Czech Radio reported citing information from the Office of the President. Pavel's predecessor, Miloš Zeman, received  477 requests and granted 132 permits. Czech Radio said it is not clear how many Czechs actually went to fight in Ukraine. Service in foreign armed forces is prohibited by law for Czechs.