Final Word from Tuesday, February 27, 2024

According to Nato, the circumstances under which the Alliance might have to use nuclear weapons are extremely remote, yet the Czech army's new Vision of the Future of Warfare after 2040 states that the likelihood of the use of nuclear weapons is rising. The document, which was signed by Army Chief of Staff Karel Řehka on Feb. 20, states further that the CR must be prepared to defend itself because "it cannot be assumed that Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty will be activated without delay in the event of a threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Czech Republic." The Czech army must be capable of acting alone as a credible deterrent and effective defending force on Czech territory, the document states. Yet the Defense Strategy says that the CR must be prepared for a "long-lasting, high-intensity defensive war with a technologically advanced adversary equipped with nuclear weapons." A logical conclusion of this could be that the Czech army wants its own nuclear deterrent. [ Czech Republic atomic mutual defense ]