Thousands of supporters of the Czech non-parliamentary PRO (Law, Respect, Expertise) party gathered in the center of Prague on Saturday to demand the resignation of the country’s government over its pro-Western policies.
Officially it is estimated that some 10,000 people attended the rally, which was held at Prague’s Wenceslas Square, according to local reports cited by Reuters. The PRO party, however, claims that over 100,000 people participated in the anti-government demonstrations, which were the third of their kind organized by the populist group this year.
The head of the party, Jindrich Rajchl, claimed during the event that the Czech Republic’s current five-party ruling coalition, headed by Prime Minister Petr Fiala, was “following orders from Brussels” and criticized the government’s continued military support for Ukraine, as well as its close ties with the United States.
“They are agents of foreign powers, people who fulfill orders, ordinary puppets. And I do not want a puppet government any more,” Rajchl told the crowd, adding that the Czech Republic should also veto any attempts by Ukraine to join NATO. Some of the demonstrators flat out demanded Prague exit the US-led military bloc.