“The agreement will definitely be signed before the end of March or even earlier. We are looking for a suitable format and a suitable date including the reason that Secretary (US Defense Lloyd) Austin is ill,” Czech Defense Minister Jana Cernochova toldCNN on January 21.
The Czech Republic plans to pay the US 105,8 billion Czech koruna (4,64 billion USD) for the agreement to buy F-35 fighters. According to CNN Additional costs including the construction of a new airport will amount to 43 8 billion koruna, and the total cost of purchasing and using these Czech aircraft in the period up to 2069 will amount to 322 billion koruna.
In September 2023, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said that Prague had decided to buy 24 F-35 fighter jets from the US. He added that the first fighter jets would be delivered to the Czech Republic this year 2031 while all 24 purchased aircraft will be put into use in 2035.
Currently the Czech Air Force is equipped with 14 JAS-39 Gripen fighters leased from Sweden and 24 L-159 aircraft produced by this country.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that US efforts to sell weapons “have caused damage to the global economy and affected to the welfare of people in many countries outside Europe”.
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