Former NATO general Petr Pavel will become the new president of the Czech Republic – he previously praised the Finnish defense forces to a British TV channel

Former NATO general Petr Pavel will become the new president

In the Czech Republic, the role of the president is largely ceremonial, but the president, among other things, acts as the commander of the armed forces.

Former NATO general Petr Pavel won the Czech presidential election yesterday Saturday, as expected. In the second round of the elections, Pavel received 58 percent of the votes and his opponent, former Prime Minister Andrej Babish 42 percent.

In the past, Pavel has served as chief of staff of the Czech army and as chairman of the NATO military committee. Pavel has profiled himself as a solid supporter of the EU and NATO.

In the Czech Republic, the president’s role is largely ceremonial, but the president, among other things, appoints the government, chooses the head of the central bank and the judges of the Constitutional Court, and acts as the commander of the armed forces.

Pavel praised the Finnish defense forces

Pavel commented last summer to the British to the GBNews channel (you will switch to another service) Finland’s and Sweden’s application to become NATO members.

Pavel said in the interview that Russia’s narrative on NATO expansion is based on the claim that NATO is an aggressive organization that seeks to destroy Russia.

– Of course it’s nonsense. This same narrative now targets Finland and Sweden, Pavel told GBNews.

Pavel stated that Finland and Russia have a long common land border and experience in armed conflict.

– They [Venäjä] know that the Finnish army is much stronger than the armies of many other countries. That is a concern for Russia. But at the same time, Finland and Sweden are proud and confident countries. They make decisions that are good for their defense.

Pavel praised that even though Finland and Sweden are not large countries in terms of population, their armed forces are very effective in proportion to the size of the population.

– If these two countries join, it will be a great advantage for NATO.

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