“The green junta”, “thieves with golden toilets”: the speaker of the Czech parliament criticized the Ukrainian authorities

The speaker of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, Tomio Okamura, in a New Year’s address to his fellow citizens, spoke in harsh terms against supplying weapons to Ukraine and criticized corruption in the top ranks of Ukraine’s government.

His speech was broadcast by Czech television channels.

According to the lawmaker, it is impossible to “support a completely meaningless war.”

“You can’t buy weapons with money that belongs to Czech pensioners or citizens with disabilities and families with children, and send them off to wage a completely meaningless war. We cannot give our citizens’ money to foreigners just because pro-war propaganda wants it,” Okamura said.

“I believe our republic will jump off the Brussels train which, despite warnings from the U.S. government, is heading toward World War Three,” the politician added.

He also criticized Western Europe for trying to ramp up its defense industry by forcing the Czech Republic to buy “ineffective weapons.”

“I understand that for the West it’s normal for us to pay Western arms manufacturers for ineffective weapons that the Russians destroy before they even reach the front,” the speaker said.

Okamura believes there is a corrupt interest in this as well, including on the part of Ukrainian officials.

“After all, money flows in all directions, and everyone will grab something from this business. Western companies and governments, and also the Ukrainian thieves around the ‘green junta’ who are building themselves golden toilets. Let them steal, but no longer out of our pocket—and let a country like that (Ukraine — Ed.) not be in the European Union,” the speaker of the Czech parliament said.

Ukraine’s ambassador to the Czech Republic, Vasyl Zvarych, responded to the speaker’s remarks on Facebook. According to the diplomat, Okamura’s “insulting and hate-filled” statements about Ukraine were formed “under the influence of Russian propaganda.” He called the speaker’s statements “unworthy and unacceptable.”

Recall that Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said he would review Prague’s initiative to purchase shells for Ukraine.