Czechia withdraws its ambassador to Russia who has been in Prague since 2022

Czechia withdraws Vítězslav Pivoňka, its ambassador to Russia, who has been in Prague since 2022, from office.

Source: Jan Lipavský, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Czechia, in a comment for the ČTK agency, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Earlier Lipavský announced the withdrawal of Pivoňka on air of the Nova TV-channel, talking about his refusal to come to the so-called inauguration of Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 7 May.

Quote: "We are working closely on choosing the new ambassador. The current ambassador has been withdrawn. I believe that we will find the new Czech ambassador one day."

Lipavský refused to comment on the deadline of appointing the new ambassador, or their name.

The minister told ČTK that the Czech ambassador in Russia will resign at the end of May.

Earlier the media assumed that Daniel Koštoval, a diplomat and former deputy minister of defence of Czechia, may become the new head of the Czech embassy in Moscow.

Vítězslav Pivoňka had been the Czech ambassador in Russia since 2018. In 2022 after the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine he went to Prague, preserving his position. De facto the representation in Moscow was headed by his deputies, for instance Jan Ondřejka.

Background: The Czech government has been discussing whether it should have an ambassador in Moscow for some time amid Russian armed aggression in Ukraine.

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