UNITED NATIONS, New York – Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, during an interview with Digital, expressed concern that Europe is struggling to influence global affairs and lacks strong leadership within its 27 member states.
“It’s clear that Europe has lost its ability to exert geopolitical power, especially in Africa and the Middle East. We are unable to take any meaningful action to stop irregular migration,” Lipavsky stated.
“When someone has the ability to, but there are no real mechanisms… they need to invest more effort into it, without a doubt,” he added.
Czechia, also known as the Czech Republic, sits in the heart of Europe and still considers itself the continent’s “natural crossroads,” placing it in a unique position to discuss issues related to immigration and border conflicts.
Despite this prominent perspective, Lipavsky acknowledged that “leadership must come from the major” countries, as “that’s how things work in international politics.”
Lipavsky argued that this lack of leadership has made the conflict between Ukraine and Russia more challenging, but he conceded that the war has helped awaken the bloc’s members to certain issues they had previously ignored.
“We have rediscovered our ability, at least in the east, to protect Ukraine, but, honestly, we need to do more,” Lipavsky said. “I wouldn’t say it’s a dire situation, but the lack of leadership is certainly noticeable.”
“As Czech foreign minister, I’m trying to come up with proposals. I’m trying to call for collective action,” he continued. “For example, we are . We have this ammunition initiative.”
“These are hundreds, thousands of shells, which make a real difference on the battlefields – more than words,” he added.
Lipavsky characterized the current state of international politics as one of “global confrontation,” with conflicts across multiple regions that impact all nations due to their effects on everything from energy and food supplies to general shipping.
“We see ,” Lipavsky said. “It’s not just Gaza or now Lebanon, where northern Israel has been under rocket fire for months, but also navigation in the Red Sea, which is being threatened by the Houthis, who are supported by Iran.”
“This is a very complex situation, and we need to de-escalate,” he added. “We need to put a lot of effort into peace, but also remember that Israel has the right to defend itself.”
Czechia earlier this year voted against granting Palestine expanded powers in the United Nations. Last week, it was one of 14 countries that voted against a Palestinian-drafted resolution that adopted the that demanded Israel withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank. Lipavsky explained that the resolution “tilted in one direction,” which was “a very basic reason to vote against” it.
However, he emphasized that Russia remains “definitely” the most significant crisis facing Czechia and other European countries.
“Russia wants to destroy the entire Ukrainian nation. They want to incorporate Ukraine into Russia and … It’s like Hitler during World War II. It’s absolutely similar,” Lipavsky insisted.
“We know that we used to be in the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence during Czechoslovakia … after World War II until the fall of the Berlin Wall,” he said. “I don’t want Czechia to experience again a situation where a dictator dictates what we do and don’t do, and exploits us.
“So, we must defend ourselves from this, from this Russian influence, and then of course, be a strong ally to the U.S. and a good member of NATO,” he added.