The Czech Republic’s successful effort to source over a million artillery shells for Ukraine is taking fire from the populist party that is leading in the polls ahead of the country’s October parliamentary election.  

ANO party leader and former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said the initiative, which has already delivered 1 million rounds this year, costs too much in taxpayer money that should be spent “on our own people.” He called the drive “rotten” in an interview with Reuters, and said it would be scrapped if he returns to power.

“Based on the information we have, there are inappropriate profit margins, poor quality and questionable suppliers involved. For these reasons, it should be managed at the NATO level,” ANO deputy chair Karel Havlíček told POLITICO.

The Czech government, under the leadership of Prime Minster Petr Fiala, has defended the ammunition initiative.

“Any halt to the initiative would be a real gift to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin. Those who talk about it are gambling with Europe’s security,” Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský warned last month in a meeting with Czech ambassadors.

Prague began the ammunition effort in 2024 in response to U.S. delays in sending shells to Ukraine. The shortfall was starving Kyiv’s forces of crucial weapons at a time when Russia was being aided by its ally North Korea and was gaining an edge on the battlefield.

Czech President Petr Pavel has said that before the initiative, Russia had a tenfold advantage in artillery ammunition, but that has since been whittled down to 2-to-1 in Moscow’s favor.

The initiative collects Western donations of ammunition and also buys shells on the global market, and sends the combined total to Kyiv. This eases the burden on other countries, and organizers have said the growing number of donations is proof of its success.

Last year the Czech Republic coordinated the delivery of 1.5 million rounds of large-caliber ammunition with financial contributions from 14 countries. This year it aims to deliver 1.8 million rounds, said Aleš Vytečka, head of the Intergovernmental Defense Cooperation Agency.

The effort has come under fire for a perceived lack of transparency, but in an interview with the BBC, Pavel called such complaints “efforts to undermine the initiative.”

However, ANO’s skepticism about the ammunition effort has struck a chord with Czech voters. A June poll by the Stem organization asked about the level of Czech support for Ukraine: 49 percent said it was too much, 29 percent that it was about right, and 6 percent felt it was not enough.

Vytečka stressed that the government aims to be as transparent as possible, but noted that some information must be kept from the public. “We cannot publicly disclose the type or price of the ammunition, its destination, or the delivery date. However, every single donation is reported on a weekly basis,” he said.

Through the ammunition initiative, he added, the Czech Republic has come to play a significant role in organizing military aid for Ukraine without assuming a greater financial burden.

Prague gains credibility

Martin Vokálek, head of the Brussels office of Czech think tank Europeum, agreed and added that Prague has gained significant political clout by having organized the initiative.

“Across Europe, at least in my circle of colleagues, this is something we are known for,” he said. 

The outgoing Czech permanent representative to the EU’s Political and Security Committee, Jitka Látal Znamenáčková, also told Czech news agency ČTK that Prague’s ammunition initiative has earned it credit in Brussels and established the Czech Republic as a constructive country that can find compromises between member states.

But despite the project’s broad support in Brussels and Kyiv, it has triggered public suspicion at home as Czechs grow increasingly skeptical of the war in Ukraine.

“Since only a few people believe Ukraine will win and even fewer believe there will be a quick resolution, they don’t see the point in sending military aid,” said Jiří Táborský, an analyst with Stem. 

Vokálek said Babiš and his party are seizing on that sentiment to attack the ammunition drive. ANO has the support of 32 percent of voters, according to POLITICO’s poll of polls, while Fiala’s Spolu coalition has only 21 percent.

If Babiš keeps his word and kills the ammunition initiative, Ukraine’s other Western partners will need to contribute more, Vokálek warned.

Pavel also said he can’t guarantee the continuity of Czech policy on Ukraine, as that depends on the outcome of the October election.

However, Vytečka said he was optimistic that Czechs are willing to continue contributing to the war and supporting Ukraine. “One of the largest pillars of our support is crowdfunding. I am astonished by how helpful the Czech people are when I see contributions, for example to howitzers or helicopters,” the director said.

A volunteer initiative calling itself Dárek pro Putina (A Gift for Putin) has raised over 1 billion koruna (€41 million) from over 360,000 donations to buy artillery, armored personnel carriers and even a Black Hawk helicopter for Ukraine.

Vytečka attributed this generosity to the historical memory of the Czech nation. The country was occupied by Nazi German forces after the 1938 Munich Conference and by Soviet troops after World War II, who in 1968 crushed the “thawing” of communism represented by the Prague Spring.

“Because of the memories of these two events, the majority feels [sympathy] with Ukraine,” he said.