The Security and Information Service of Czechia (BIS) will investigate Czech companies that may have exported equipment to Russia for weapons manufacturing.
Source: iRozhlas citing BIS spokesperson Ladislav Šticha, as reported by European Pravda
Details: The Czech news outlet reports that BIS will launch an investigation into companies named by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy has stated that eight Czech companies may be supplying Russia with machine tools intended for weapons production.
"As soon as we receive the list, we will investigate these companies and shops," Šticha said.
He noted that hundreds of companies are attempting to export goods to Russia.
"We have not yet received the official list of potential domestic exporters, so it is difficult to comment on which companies and goods are involved," Šticha said in response to a question about whether BIS already knows which companies Zelenskyy was referring to.
He added that a significant share of goods now subject to embargoes had been exported before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, when sanctions were not yet in place.
"However, almost certainly, this would not have been direct export from Czechia to Russia, as this is impossible without a licence and such goods could not have crossed the border legally," he explained.
Šticha highlighted that the goods in question may have been supplied before 2022 or re-exported through third countries.
He also noted that many companies apply for export licences to so-called safe countries, including EU states. While they are required to ensure that the buyer is the end-user, goods are sometimes resold and re-exported to Russia through intermediaries. "Companies often claim they were unaware of the resale, and it is very difficult to prove otherwise," Šticha said.
The spokesperson also pointed to a lack of funding and personnel to combat the export of embargoed goods.
"This area requires more and more financial and human resources. Right now, there are neither. Only a few dozen state experts are dealing with hundreds of companies trying to export goods to Russia," he concluded.
Background:
In early 2025, a scheme to supply sanctioned equipment to Russia was uncovered in Lithuania. Similar violations have been reported involving a German company.In late June, Finnish customs announced an investigation into suspected shipments of sanctioned goods to Russia between 2022 and 2023 involving a company from Finland's east.
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