According to researchers Vlastimil Havlík and Alena Kluknavská for the European Centre for Populism Studies, Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) was one of the few pro-Russian political parties in the Czech parliament after 2015. The SPD’s rhetoric on Russia mixes anti-liberal, anti-European, anti-American, and xenophobic themes, depicting Putin and his government as guardians of ‘traditional’ values and Christianity.
In his social media postings, the party leader Okamura backed Russia’s dismissive attitude toward immigrants, same-sex marriage, and the role of the West in global politics. Aside from that, the party shares Russia’s perspective on the invasion of Crimea and actions in the Luhansk and Donetsk areas since 2014. Okamura also frames the armed assault against Ukraine as Russia’s “logical reaction” to Euromaidan. The party’s officials acknowledged the referendum in Crimea as genuine, characterised it as a choice taken by Ukrainian people, and even drew comparisons to the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918.
The anti-war narrative characterises events in Ukraine as ‘aggression’ without assigning blame to Russia, oversimplifying reality and portraying it as a problem that requires ‘peaceful, diplomatic’ resolution. Instead, Okamura partially places the blame on Ukraine, framing the war as Russia’s logical response to a perceived security threat from both Ukraine and the West. According to Gavlik and Kluknavska, Okamura hardly ever mentioned Russia, Putin, or the phrase “invasion” in his social media posts. Okamura removed the old Facebook posts that made positive references to Putin.
The SPD also opposes economic sanctions imposed on Russia, calling them ‘ineffective’. The party has also criticised military aid to Ukraine, warning that it could lead to a greater escalation and threaten the security of the Czech Republic, thus legitimising the aggressor and its actions.
The PSD has embraced the financial crisis as the primary framework for discussing the ongoing war. Okamura claimed that one of the highest inflation rates in the Czech Republic among EU countries was the result of the invasion, which threatened the country’s energy security due to its dependence on Russian gas. However, he neglected to attribute any responsibility to Russia. In this context, the party’s thesis is that the Czech Republic requires “cooperation” with Russia in order to improve its quality of life, making reference to Viktor Orban’s stance and actions. In addition, Okamura encourages the purchase of “cheap gas” directly from Russia’s Gazprom rather than through the “expensive” German gasmarket.
The SPD also criticises social assistance to Ukrainian refugees, appealing to nationalism and ‘welfare chauvinism’. However, the party opposes not the social payments per se, but rather their goals and scope. Okamura also claims that the financial support for Ukrainian refugees and the costs of their integration are ‘expensive and destabilising’ for the Czech social and healthcare systems. Furthermore, he describes the large number of migrants as a challenge for the Czech education system, public security, and labour market.
Okamura has also questioned the status of Ukrainian exiles, accusing them of receiving excessive solidarity and humanitarian payments from the budget. He has also downplayed the seriousness of the situation, asserting that there is no war on most of the territory of Ukraine. The SPD party leader once stated that the Czech government allegedly pays more attention to Ukrainians than to Czechs, and that he “feels as if the Czech government is the Ukrainian government in exile,” creating an artificial split between Czechs and Ukrainians.
Voters in the Czech Republic will shortly face regional elections. The public has long perceived these elections as “second-order” elections, as evidenced by the participation of approximately one-third of eligible electors. In the opinion of political scientist Lubomír Kopeček of the SYRI National Institute and Masaryk University, this is unlikely to alter, as evidenced by the campaign. Also, the number of candidates has decreased in this year’s regional elections. Four years ago, there were nearly ten thousand candidates; however, there are now 8,280.
The 2024 regional and Senate elections will take place on Friday and Saturday, 20-21 September. Thirteen regions will elect new representatives, who will then serve a four-year mandate.
