Jan Lipavský would remain foreign minister as an independent candidate after he left the liberal Czech Pirate Party, bne IntelliNews reported.
It will be an honour to continue in this work. Chairmen of four coalition parties backed me to continue. I believe I will be able to continue working on Czechia being a reliable and pro-Western partner.
Lipavský and Law Minister Michal Šalomoun quit the party on 1 October after an internal party vote. Almost 80 per cent of voters decided to leave the cabinet after Petr Fiala sacked Pirate Party leader Ivan Bartoš.
Fiala also announced that the Czech Ministry of Justice, headed by Pavel Blažek, would take over the cabinet portfolio.
The Czech Republic held the EU presidency in the second half of 2022 and established itself as a strong supporter of Ukraine during Lipavský’s tenure. Along with Hungary, the Czech Republic voted against a UN General Assembly resolution on 18 September calling for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza within a year.
