The Czech army is prepared to offer its forces for NATO missions in
Afghanistan and Mali and in the Sinai peninsula next year and in 2016,
according to the Ministry of Defense. Czech aircraft will also be offered
to protect NATO airspace in 2016, probably in the Baltic States and over
Iceland. A final proposal on the foreign missions should be prepared with
in the next couple of weeks in order for the lower house of parliament to
vote on it. The current Czech presence in Afghanistan totals 300 with the
likelihood that it could be cut slightly but not increased, according to
Minister of Defence Martin Stropnický. Thirty-eight Czechs are serving in
Mali and 14 on the international observer mission in the Sinai.