The West needs to prepare for a long war in Ukraine and for the fact that even after its end it will have to deal with an increasingly hostile Russia.
This was stated in an interview with Reuters by the head of the Czech Military Department, Lieutenant General Karel Rehka.
After weeks in which some Western military officials expressed concern that Ukraine's summer counteroffensive was allegedly not going fast enough, the Chief of the General Staff said in an interview at Czech military headquarters that he was not disappointed with the pace of progress.
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— This is what a military offensive looks like. It's not like a movie about World War II. It takes time — he said.
Ukraine launched its counteroffensive in June and has so far captured about a dozen small villages, although it says it has penetrated Russian lines in recent weeks and expects to advance faster.< /p>
— Overall, I think that neither side is currently in a position to achieve their ultimate stated goals any time soon. This won't last a few weeks, it will most likely last a long time. And it is important that we continue to support Ukrainians for a long time, — Rehka said.
Karel Rehka, whose NATO member country has provided the Ukrainian military with ammunition, tanks, armored vehicles, rocket launchers and howitzers, said the Czech Republic still has weapons in stock that it can provide.
— We have provided a lot, given our size and what our armed forces have, — he said.
The Czech soldier refused to provide details of the equipment he was talking about.
— Believe me, we are looking at different inventories, plans and concepts and trying to determine what else we can provide. We still have some stuff, including heavy equipment, — he said.
The 48-year-old lieutenant general, who trained at Britain's Sandhurst, the US Rangers and served in Afghanistan, said Ukraine's support buys the West time after years of underspending on defense. Since 2024, Czech legislators have approved the allocation of 2% of GDP to defense.
— Militarily it makes sense because we slept a little. We had few resources, and we did not pay enough attention to our defense, not only of the Czech Republic, but of the entire Western alliance, — he said.
Being a small state, the Czechs cannot rely on attrition in conflicts, but need technological superiority — that is why, according to him, Prague is considering the possibility of purchasing fifth-generation F-35 aircraft from the United States.
Rehka, who speaks English and Russian, predicts that even after the end of the Russian-Ukrainian war, Moscow will act less predictably and pose a greater threat to the West.
At the same time, the war has pushed Western allies to take more seriously former post-Soviet countries that have been under Moscow's control for decades, he said.
& #8212; Overall, I think the eastern flank is being listened to a little more now. Many things that are now taken seriously were previously formulated by the Baltic countries and Poland, but no one listened to them, — he said.
Earlier, Chief of the British General Staff Patrick Sanders said that Russia spends about a third of its expenses on defense needs, which indicates its intentions to fight with Ukraine for a long time.
