Agreement on security cooperation and long-term support between Ukraine and the Czech Republic

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Introduction

Ukraine and the Czech Republic, hereinafter "the Participants", condemn in the strongest possible terms the unjustified, unprovoked, illegal and brutal war of aggression by Russia against Ukraine, which started in 2014 and by which Russia seriously violates international law, including the United Nations Charter.

The Czech Republic is unwavering in its support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within the borders, which have been internationally recognised since 1991, including the territorial sea, and recognises Ukraine's inherent right of self-defence enshrined in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.

The Participants reiterate their commitment to the policy of non-recognition of the attempted illegal annexation of parts of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, and also denounce the widespread violations of human rights occurring in Crimea, as well as on other temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, encompassing, among other things, arbitrary detentions, torture, and prejudice directed against minority communities and the Crimean Tatar indigenous people.

The Participants call for unconditional withdrawal of all Russia's forces and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders as of 1991.

Ukraine acknowledges the sustainable, decisive support provided by the Czech Republic as well as European, G7 and other international partners to strengthen, equip and train Ukraine's security and defence forces as well as the comprehensive non-military assistance provided to the people of Ukraine to mitigate the humanitarian, social, economic and fiscal consequences of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

Together the Participants will continue to strive for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine as well as for peace, security, stability and prosperity on the European continent and in the broader Euro-Atlantic area.

The Czech Republic recognises both the contribution of Ukraine to ensuring and protecting the European continent's security vis-à-vis Russian aggressive imperialistic behaviour as well as the enormous price that Ukraine and Ukrainian citizens pay for this defence.

Ukraine will continue to implement an ambitious reform programme and the Czech Republic is dedicated to supporting Ukraine's reform efforts. These are essential for Ukraine's aspirations for European Union (EU) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) memberships.

The Participants underline their willingness to further strengthen their bilateral relations across all fields, including economic and defence cooperation, strengthening resilience, supporting recovery, reconstruction and sustainable development as well as cultural exchange and cooperation, including fostering understanding, cooperation and contacts between their people.

Based on this, the Participants are determined to strengthen their security cooperation through bilateral security commitments and arrangements and long-term support measures as set out hereinafter:

I. Scope

1. The Participants intend to build on the Joint Declaration of Support for Ukraine (hereinafter "the G7 Joint Declaration") adopted in Vilnius on 12 July 2023 and subsequently joined to date by a further 25 states, including the Czech Republic.
2. The Participants are determined to affirm, deepen and expand their cooperation and partnership, which are based on their common interests in the defence of international law and order, peace, and the protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms.
3. The Czech Republic intends to provide unwavering support for Ukraine for as long as it takes in order to help Ukraine defend itself, restore its territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, secure its free and democratic future, enable Ukraine to continue providing services to its people and to uphold a functioning Ukrainian economy, and deter future Russian aggression.

II. Security and Defence

1. The Czech Republic firmly stands for the inherent right of states to individual and collective defence.

All attempts to redraw borders by force are unlawful. Ukraine's security is integral to Euro-Atlantic and global security. Ukraine defends not only its sovereignty and the right to decide its own destiny, but also fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law.

1. Independent, free and democratic Ukraine, within its internationally recognised borders and capable of deterring and defending against any future aggression, is in the security and defence interest of the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic fully endorses the conclusions of several NATO Summits that confirm Ukraine's future in the Alliance. The Czech Republic stands ready to work together with Ukraine on fulfilling this pledge.
2. The Czech Republic has supported Ukraine steadfastly in its defence against Russian war of aggression for many years. It did so even before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia started on 24 February 2022. In the aftermath of the invasion, Czech support has intensified substantially. The Czech Republic has been among the first countries to supply heavy military equipment to Ukraine and it is committed to continue to provide its military support in a flexible way, including by utilising its defence-industrial sector taking into account Ukraines evolving needs.
3. From the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, the Czech Republic provided Ukraine with military assistance worth around 400 mil. EUR.
4. The Czech Republic stands fully behind the Pledge of long-term security assistance for Ukraine made at the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C. Consequently, it is ready to contribute proportionally to the overall NATO ambition for the assistance for Ukraine.
5. The Czech Republic is ready to continue to provide political and military support to Ukraine with the same dynamics across the land, air, space and cyberspace domains, both bilaterally and within the framework of international organisations and coalitions, in particular the EU, NATO, Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) and other informal groupings. The Czech Republic will continuously consider ways to expand and streamline its support, particularly in the following areas:
   • Provision of military materiel - the Czech Republic will continue to explore further options for deliveries of military materiel across all domains with regard to Ukraine's evolving needs and requirements;
   • Capability coalitions - the Czech Republic will actively contribute to joint efforts within the capability coalitions in the UDCG framework. To date, the Czech Republic has joined the artillery, fighter jet and demining coalitions. The aim of the coalitions is to facilitate effective, flexible and timely delivery of capabilities and means Ukraine requires to defend against Russia's aggression, as well as to promote long-term development of modern Armed Forces and other security and defence forces of Ukraine;
   • Training - the Czech Republic has long been one of the most active providers of training for security and defence forces of Ukraine to defend against Russia's aggression. The Participants share the ambition for 2024 and beyond to train up to 4,000 Ukrainian soldiers annually, in particular but not exclusively within the EU Military Assistance Mission Ukraine (EUMAM). It is understood that the Czech Republic supports EUMAM transformation and expansion to other areas in accordance with Ukraine's evolving needs, including adjustments of the security and defence forces of Ukraine due to developments in recruitment legislation.

The Czech Republic will provide both universal and specialised training in close cooperation with Ukraine and with partners in the EU, NATO and other formats. Ukraine and the Czech Republic share the understanding, that the training shall be assessed on a regular basis and, if needed, adjusted accordingly;

• Military education - the Participants, through their respective Ministries of Defence, will also pursue collaboration in advancing professional military education. This will encompass future forces design, integration of NATO concepts and operation procedures, command and control, and other crucial areas to help Ukraine align with common principles and standards on its pathway to NATO membership;
• Industry - the Participants will support and promote efforts towards increasing the respective industrial production capacities on their territories. Robust and sustainable industrial base is essential for Ukraine's defence. Main areas of cooperation include expanding capacities to produce ammunition and to provide maintenance and repair, as well as establishing joint ventures, reducing barriers, and promoting defence and dual-use research and development.

Ukraine and the Czech Republic will work together to address existing defence material supply chain bottlenecks jeopardising capacities and capabilities of both Participants to manufacture priority weapons and ammunition.

The Participants will support projects within the long-term Czech-Ukrainian military- technical cooperation, primarily in areas of small and large calibre ammunition, small arms and light weapons, unmanned aerial vehicles, electronic warfare and heavy equipment, including maintenance, repairs and overhaul.

The Czech Republic will strive to ensure adequate conditions for temporary, partial or full allocation of Ukrainian industrial production capacities on its territory, in cooperation with the Czech defence industry, the long-term aim being the reallocation back to Ukraine once the situation permits it. Ukraine and the Czech Republic will together work towards facilitating conditions for the Czech defence industry to operate on Ukrainian territory.

The Czech Republic will work with Ukraine to identify funding sources required to enable development of Ukraine's defence industrial base, which will include providing investment and financial assistance, in particular in the time of war and post-war recovery. The Czech Republic will continue to seek ways to Ukraine's defence industry development needs.

The Participants will work together to strengthen protection of the transferred technologies and intellectual property rights in Ukraine.

The Czech Republic will support Ukraine's effort to integrate its defence industry into NATO and the EU defence and security frameworks. In particular, the Czech Republic intends to support Ukraine's defence industry integration into the European defence technological and industrial base, considering also the opportunities provided by the European Defence Industrial Strategy and European Defence Industry Programme.

In addition, the Participants will coordinate joint activities in defence-industrial cooperation on third markets with the aim to limit dependencies on and political and economic influence of Russia and support transition to Western standards.

The Participants will maximise their efforts to enhance and develop the capabilities of Ukraine's defence industry as they recognise its indispensable role in Ukraine's strategic goal to restore its territorial integrity within the internationally recognised borders of 1991, while also serving as a major driver of economic recovery and being an essential part of effective deterrence against any future attempts of aggression. Finally, a strong Ukrainian defence industry is a pillar to ensure security and prosperity in Ukraine, the Czech Republic and beyond.

• Resources - the Czech Republic will continue to support and promote utilisation of suitable mechanisms and instruments of the EU, NATO or other formats to secure financial resources for military support to Ukraine.

The Czech Republic strives to find solutions to acute shortages of artillery ammunition, which impact Ukraine's ability to defend against Russia's aggression. The only long-term solution is to increase the production capacity of the European and Ukrainian defence industry, including securing the supply of the necessary raw materials and production inputs. To address the urgent needs of Ukraine, the Czech Republic has led an initiative to facilitate purchases of large calibre ammunition in third countries and appreciates all partners that have joined this endeavour. The Czech Republic will continue to actively pursue efforts to cover the urgent needs of Ukraine in a timely and flexible way, as well as explore options to assist in establishing ammunition stockpiles necessary for the prompt deterrence of potential future aggressions;

• Political support - the Czech Republic actively contributes to the efforts aiming at unifying the international community in support of attacked Ukraine and in search for new partners to assist in Ukraine's defence efforts and uphold the international law, and is ready to continue in this regard;
• Crime investigation - the Czech Republic contributes to the efforts of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in investigating alleged international crimes committed in relation to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The Participants intend to further support these efforts;
• Medical treatment - the Czech Republic is determined to maintain provision of medical care to Ukraine's wounded military personnel and cover associated expenses;
• Reforms - the Czech Republic will carry on its support to Security Sector Reform in Ukraine aiming at building a modern and resilient security and defence sector, including enhancing interoperability and standardisation with NATO;
• Aviation - the Participants mutually recognise military aircraft airworthiness and training of military air and ground crews and will seek further opportunities to deepen this cooperation.

1. Apart from immediate practical assistance, the Czech Republic will support long-term efforts towards the post-conflict reconstruction of Ukraine, restoration of its deterrence and defence capabilities, and reforms in relation to Ukraine's integration into Euro-Atlantic structures, as well as effective public administration.
2. The Participants will also continue to consult, as appropriate, on the situation and developments of Russia's war of aggression, including in the event of significant escalation.
3. The Participants will make efforts to ensure that the military capabilities of Ukraine are at such a level that, in the event of external military aggression against the Czech Republic, Ukraine is able to provide effective military assistance. The terms, format and scope of such assistance will be determined by the Participants.
4. To ensure above-mentioned objectives, the Participants will hold annual senior-level Strategic Defence and Security Policy Dialogue.

Countering chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) risks

1. The Participants intend to further expand their existing bilateral cooperation to strengthen Ukraine's resilience against CBRN weapons-related risks. The Czech Republic intends in particular to continue its support to Ukraine in enhancing the nuclear safety and security of its nuclear plants, developing its civil protection capabilities against CBRN-related risks and enhancing its resilience against biosecurity risks.

Countering cyber threats

1. The Participants recognise the need to identify, detect and counter malign cyber operations and in particular malicious use of cyber capabilities by the Russian and other hostile state and non-state actors.
2. The Participants intend to further expand their existing bilateral cooperation to strengthen their resilience and law enforcement cooperation with regard to cyberattacks, cyber operations, cybercrime, and to provide secure public services online. The Participants will work together to increase security of the IT infrastructure of both countries from cyberattacks. The Czech Republic will also support the modernisation and reform of Ukraine's cyber security architecture.
3. The Participants will continue their cooperation in cyber exercises and in providing mutual training and internships to cybersecurity experts. The Czech Republic is ready to contribute to the development of Ukraine's capabilities to respond to threats to critical infrastructure, such as supply chain threats, including through the provision of international technical assistance to Ukraine.
4. The Participants will support each other by sharing relevant expertise in the area of advanced information and communications technologies (including but not limited to cloud and quantum computing, advanced networking technologies, the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence (AI), etc.) in accordance with their respective national and EU's legal provisions.
5. The Participants will strive to intensify Ukraine's cooperation with EU and NATO structures in cyber security.
6. The Participants intend to strengthen their cooperation to counter information security threats, including propaganda and other forms of foreign information manipulation and interference, including disinformation. The Participants aim to engage in lessons learned, share best practices, and potentially cooperate on joint campaigns and relevant projects to enhance their collective response to these challenges.

Strategic communication and information security

1. The Participants will continue mutual cooperation in the field of countering Russian and any other foreign information manipulation and interference, including disinformation and propaganda.
2. The Participants will strengthen their cooperation in the field of improved resilience and preparedness of both government and civil entities.
3. The Czech Republic intends to promote the development of Ukraine's capabilities to counter foreign information manipulation and interference. The Participants will take common measures to counter disinformation by foreign states and organisations, and strive to develop joint educational and training programmes for experts in the field of strategic communication and public diplomacy, regular exchange of experience and professional events involving experts in the field of strategic communication and public diplomacy. The Participants will also cooperate through the exchange of best practices and lessons learned. They will seek to continue to collaborate and support efforts to address disinformation campaigns.

Intelligence and counterintelligence cooperation

1. The Participants will enhance their cooperation in the field of intelligence and counterintelligence in accordance with applicable legal requirements and possibilities, in order to detect, prevent, and deter any aggression and hybrid warfare from Russia or other hostile state or non-state actors to secure Ukraine and the Czech Republic from such malign activities. This will be achieved through but not limited to, intelligence and experience sharing, as well as cooperation between intelligence and security agencies of the Participants, including pursuing joint initiatives, trainings and providing technical assistance.
2. The Participants will seek to facilitate even greater scope and procedures (means) of information sharing regarding defence and security between various Ukrainian and Czech government departments and agencies.

Cooperation in the sphere of combating serious and organised crime

1. The Participants recognise that serious and organised crime (SOC), particularly Illicit Finance, financing actions aimed at undermining Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as its internal stability, but also other types of SOC, pose a threat to Ukrainian society.
2. The Participants intend to take actions to counteract the activities of SOC, in particular individuals and groups that are trying to infiltrate across Ukrainian society, have criminal influence in certain regions, including the temporarily occupied ones, and are actively used as a tool of "hybrid warfare" to counteract the processes of recovery and reconciliation in Ukraine.
3. In order to counter all types of activities of SOC, the Participants will take respective measures in accordance with applicable legal requirements to:
   • conduct joint operations to detect and suppress SOC;
   • analyse the criminal situation in the countries and identify the main risks from SOC;
   • identify assets that may be seized in criminal proceedings or recognised as unjustified assets;
   • create joint working groups and joint investigation teams of prosecutors and other parties; and
   • facilitate the provision of training and sharing of best practices.
4. The above measures are not intended to be exhaustive, and the Participants may pursue other forms of cooperation to achieve their goals in combating SOC.

III. Economic stability, resilience and reconstruction, sustainable development

Economic cooperation

1. In order to deepen existing economic cooperation, the Participants state that the promotion of economic activities and in particular creation of legal and institutional framework for the support of private sector involvement and investment is an integral part of the overall approach to economic cooperation.
2. The Czech Republic recognises the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast as a region of special interest and will take this into account in realisation of economic cooperation, as well as other measures for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
3. The Participants recognise the Joint Commission for Economic, Industrial and Scientific-Technical Cooperation (hereinafter "Commission") established under Article 3 of the Agreement between the Government of the Czech Republic and the Government of Ukraine on Economic, Industrial and Scientific-Technical Cooperation, signed in 2004, as the important platform for the development of bilateral trade and economic cooperation. The Participants will ensure an intergovernmental structured dialogue within the framework of the Commission's mechanism to strengthen mutual economic cooperation, including for the cooperation on projects of mutual interest in accordance with Article 5 of the above mentioned Agreement.
4. The Czech Republic intends to organise engagement of Czech businesses on the platform of the Business Club Ukraine, which stands under the aegis of the Commission as an open communication platform for all Czech businesses, governmental and non-governmental actors involved in the reconstruction of Ukraine. Ukraine will support co-operation of the Czech and Ukrainian business.
5. The Czech Republic expresses its commitment to support reconstruction through various programs, examples as follows: 1) Aid for Trade Ukraine: small-scale projects based on Ukrainian demand. 2) Capacity Building for Ukraine: short-term incomings or long-term twinning of relevant experts. 3) Trade Fairs and Exhibitions for Ukraine: Czech official participation on relevant Ukraine-related events. Ukraine will assist the Czech Republic in these efforts.
6. The Participants are willing, in accordance with their laws and obligations arising from the international agreements to which they are party, to cooperate and share information regarding their capital, technology, and insurance markets, with particular emphasis on defence industries, in order to strengthen bilateral trade and foster mutual economic growth. In this context, advocating for the localization of production in Ukraine stands as a pivotal endeavour.
7. In recognition of Ukraine's aspiration towards European integration, the Czech Republic pledges its support to Ukraine in aligning its legislative framework with the standards of the EU. Furthermore, the Participants aim to enhance collaboration across various sectors, including but not limited to construction industry, healthcare, transportation, agriculture, mechanical engineering, defence industry, cybersecurity, digital transformation, chemical industry, water management, energy sector in particular nuclear energy, maintenance of existing reactors, construction of new reactors, as well as fleet approach in Small Modular Reactors and green and low-carbon hydrogen including dedicated infrastructure.
8. In addition to fostering close and regular policy dialogues, the Participants envisage facilitating, among other objectives, people-to-people exchanges aimed at sharing best practices and knowledge to foster mutual learning and development of effective policies. Furthermore, the Participants seek to promote bilateral trade and investment while fostering joint research, development, and demonstration initiatives.

Recovery, reconstruction and sustainable development

1. The Czech Republic has provided civilian support for Ukraine's democratic transition and sustainable development for many years. In this regard, the Czech Republic intends to continue in such efforts with multi-year funding for reconstruction and sustainable economic development (Programme Ukraine), to support Ukraine's recovery, security and development.
2. The Czech Republic will contribute towards the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine in line with the Ukraine Recovery Plan through various bilateral and multilateral channels, including the Ukraine Facility of the European Union.
3. The authorities of Ukraine will ensure that the support provided for the purposes of recovery and reconstruction is spent in an efficient, transparent and accountable way.
4. The Participants declare their common intent to focus on development cooperation in the following priority areas:
   • sustainable landscape management, including agriculture, sustainable use of natural resources and promotion of green development;
   • inclusive social development, including healthcare and education;
   • public administration and civil society, including technical assistance in support of transformation towards the EU standards.

Given the extraordinary scope of the challenge presented by Russia's massive contamination of Ukrainian soil with mines, ammunition and other explosive ordnance, the Czech Republic intends to continue to support humanitarian demining efforts together with its partners.

1. The development cooperation will involve the Czech Republic's partnership with the city of Dnipro and the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The Czech Republic with support of the Ukrainian central authorities will actively engage with the city and the region to support their recovery, reconstruction and sustainable development.

Resilience of energy and other critical infrastructure

1. Energy supply security remains crucial for Ukraine's resilience. Building upon the G7+ support for Ukraine's energy infrastructure, the Czech Republic is ready to continue to provide long-term support to Ukraine's overall energy sector with a special focus on green energy transition.
2. The Participants will work to accelerate both short-term commitments and long-term economy-wide net zero goals, identify areas for enhanced bilateral cooperation and facilitate energy efficiency, nuclear and renewable energy as well as innovative and sustainable energy and climate technologies and services to support economic growth and well-paid jobs in both countries. The Czech Republic will support Ukraine in enhancing resilience of its critical infrastructure, particularly energy, water and heat infrastructure.
3. The Czech Republic is prepared to contribute to the development of Ukraine's critical infrastructure protection capabilities, as well as to the access of Ukrainian specialists to relevant international programmes. The Czech Republic intends to engage Ukrainian specialists with experience in critical infrastructure security to implement relevant projects on its territory and in partner countries. The Participants will launch joint educational and training programmes for critical infrastructure protection specialists.
4. The Czech Republic will work with Ukraine to identify sources of funding for grant programmes to develop the protection and resilience of critical infrastructure in various sectors.
5. The Czech Republic will contribute to the development of Ukraine's capabilities to defend against, deter and respond to threats to critical infrastructure by facilitating the availability of modern technological solutions in the field of critical infrastructure protection for its cybersecurity actors, including through the provision of international technical assistance to Ukraine.

Humanitarian assistance, civil protection and resilience

1. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Czech Republic has provided humanitarian assistance and other financial and in-kind support for civil protection and resilience of the war-affected population of Ukraine, including internally displaced persons and other displaced persons, enabling people to access healthcare, drinking water, electricity and heating or shelters.
2. Given the scale of the needs, the Czech Republic aims to continue providing humanitarian and civil protection assistance in cooperation with its partners. The Participants remain committed to working to stabilise the situation of internally displaced persons in Ukraine, including through the involvement of the UN and other relevant actors.
3. The Czech Republic hosts the highest number of Ukrainian displaced persons in the EU per capita, providing them with access to the public health insurance system and public education.
4. The Participants declare their common intent to respond to the basic humanitarian and civil protection needs of the war-affected population in an efficient, coherent and transparent way.
5. The Participants aim to attract both private and public investment to rebuild infrastructure and support local communities in Ukraine. By fostering entrepreneurship and innovation, they seek to empower Ukrainian businesses for long-term resilience and prosperity.

Compensation for damage, loss and injury caused by Russian aggression

1. The Participants reaffirm that Russia is to be held accountable for the damage, loss and injury caused as a consequence of its war of aggression, and that it must pay for the long-term reconstruction of Ukraine. Russian sovereign assets should remain immobilised until the Russian Federation has paid for the damage it has caused by its aggression against Ukraine. The Czech Republic, working with its partners in the EU, aims to continue to explore all lawful routes through which Russian assets and revenues stemming from them can be used to support Ukraine, in accordance with European and international law.
2. The Participants will continue to work together, along with G7 states and others, towards the establishment of an international compensation mechanism to provide compensation for damage, loss or injury caused by Russia's aggression, as envisaged by the Statute of the Register of Damage Caused by the Aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine adopted by the Resolution of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe CM/Res(2023)3. In this regard, the Participants will explore appropriate options for the financing of an international compensation mechanism to provide prompt and adequate compensation to victims of aggression.

IV. Technical and financial support, reforms

Technical and financial support

1. The Czech Republic will persevere to support existing international, European and the EU frameworks and institutions in their endeavours to continue providing regular and predictable financial as well as technical support to Ukraine.
2. The Participants intend to strengthen their technical cooperation in the field of financial market supervision, including public sector banks.

Ukraine's reform process

1. The Participants reaffirm that inclusive reform is indispensable for Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic aspirations as well as for its future security, prosperity, democracy, and resilience of its institutions.
2. Ukraine will continue its ambitious reform process with a particular focus on the reform areas set out for accession to the EU and outlined in the European Commission's recommendations of 8 November 2023, most notably justice, the rule of law, decentralisation, the fight against corruption and money laundering, security sector and state management which underscore Ukraine's commitment to democracy and the rule of law, respect for human rights and media freedoms.
3. All reforms will be undertaken according to the priority reform areas set out for accession to the EU and the International Monetary Fund benchmarks, and in close coordination with major donors, in particular the International Financial Institutions, the EU and the G7. The Czech Republic will continue to strongly support Ukraine on this path.

V. Political cooperation

A just and sustainable peace

1. The Participants recognise that Ukraine and the whole of Europe will not be secure until there is a just peace that respects Ukraine's rights under international law and the UN Charter. The Participants will therefore work together for a just and lasting peace on terms set by Ukraine that has broad global support.
2. The Czech Republic welcomes Ukraine's efforts to create a just and sustainable peace, based on the respect of international law, the UN Charter and the principles of Ukraine's Peace Formula. The Czech Republic is willing to continue to play an active role in taking forward steps to implement initiatives that reflect the principles of the UN Charter. Moreover, the Czech Republic, from the very beginning, has been significantly involved in Ukraine's Peace Formula process as a co-chair and has been playing a leading role in taking forward steps especially with regard to the Working Group #1 "Nuclear safety" of the Peace Formula, but not only.

Accountability

1. The Participants reaffirm their commitment to holding the Russian Federation accountable for causing losses and damage to individuals and entities, as well as to the state of Ukraine, as a result of the Russian aggression in violation of the Charter of the United Nations.
2. The Participants underline their firm dedication to bringing to justice those responsible for war crimes and other international crimes committed in connection with Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. They concur on the need to ensure accountability for such crimes under international law committed by Russian leadership and in particular by the members of Russian Armed Forces on the territory of Ukraine through appropriate, fair and independent investigations and prosecution at the national or international level, and to ensure the indiscriminate enforcement of international humanitarian law with the view to prevent future crimes. The Participants will continue supporting the work of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine and the International Criminal Court to ensure that allegations of war crimes and other international crimes are fully and fairly investigated by independent, effective and robust legal mechanisms.
3. The Participants share the conviction on the need to ensure accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine and the establishment of a tribunal to ensure effective accountability. Therefore, the Participants will continue their engagement in the "Core Group on options for the establishment of a tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine".
4. Ukraine will ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court including the Amendments on the crime of aggression adopted by the Review Conference of the Rome Statute held in Kampala, Uganda on 11th June 2010 by Resolution RC/Res.6, as mentioned in the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement and on the way to its membership in the EU.
5. The Czech Republic will support Ukraine to ensure the immediate release and return of all unlawfully detained, forcibly transferred and illegally deported civilians, primarily children. The Participants will contribute to international efforts to bring those responsible for organising the illegal deportation and displacement of Ukrainian children to justice according to international law and the decisions of international judicial institutions.
6. The Czech Republic is committed to continuing its participation in the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children led by Ukraine and Canada, which was launched on 2 February 2024, and contributing to the achievement of the objectives set out in this Coalition's Framework Document.

VI. Future armed attack

1. In the event of future Russian armed attack against Ukraine, at the request of either of the Participants, the Participants will consult within 24 hours, bilaterally or via other channels they both deem suitable, in order to determine appropriate next steps.
2. The Czech Republic affirms that in those circumstances and acting in accordance with its legal and constitutional requirements and in accordance with international and European law, it would provide Ukraine with swift and sustained security assistance, modern military equipment, and economic assistance, seek agreement in the EU to impose economic and other costs on Russia, and consult with Ukraine on its needs as it exercises its right of self-defence enshrined in Article 51 of the UN Charter.
3. In order to ensure the widest and most effective collective response to any future armed attack, the Participants could further develop this part in order to align with any mechanism that Ukraine may subsequently agree with its other international partners, including the signatories of the Joint Declaration of the G7 of 12 July 2023.

VII. Bilateral Relations, European and Euro-Atlantic Integration

Bilateral relations

1. The Participants will further develop their close and friendly relations in all areas, based on shared values and mutual interests, and an unshakeable solidarity in the face of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and of common threats and challenges.
2. The Participants seek to continue to work together even more closely in the future in the political, economic and cultural spheres. The future of Ukraine and its citizens lies in the EU and NATO, and the Participants will engage together for a strong and unified Europe and Euro-Atlantic Community.
3. The Participants underline that the bilateral security commitments and arrangements under this Agreement cannot constitute an alternative for NATO membership.
4. The Participants will further deepen their bilateral relations by further strengthening regular consultation formats and by exchanging and sharing practical experience of the Czech Republic's membership in both the EU and NATO.
5. In the interest of strengthening priority cooperation with the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, the Czech Republic will take steps to establish a diplomatic mission in the city of Dnipro.
6. The Participants express their willingness to promote cooperation also at the local government level across a wide range of issues.

European support, sanctions and European integration

1. The Czech Republic will contribute to ongoing and future support to Ukraine provided by the EU.
2. The Participants will continue working to ensure that the costs to Russia for its aggression continue to rise, including through sanctions, the use of revenues from immobilised Russian assets, and export controls. The Participants recognise the value of sanctions in restricting Russia's access to the finance, goods, technology and services it is utilising to wage war of aggression, in bearing down on Russia's revenue streams, and to deter future attacks. The Participants also recall that sanctions are most effective when adopted and implemented in coordination with international partners. The Czech Republic will work within the EU on pursuing robust restrictive measures (sanctions) against sectors of the Russian economy and those in the Russian Federation and outside who are supporting or profiting from the war, or assisting in sanctions circumvention in third countries, as long as Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine continues and Ukraine's territorial integrity is not restored. The Czech Republic will seek determined action to tackle all forms of sanctions circumvention as well as to reinforce its own domestic resilience against Russian-linked illicit finance and Kremlin-linked elites. Ukraine and the Czech Republic will provide each other with up-to-date information on the grounds for sanctions and other relevant information, in compliance with relevant obligations.
3. The Czech Republic will continue to support Ukraine on its path towards EU membership and to offer practical guidance and assistance.
4. The Czech Republic intends to support Ukraine's efforts towards aligning with the EU Single Market with the overall goal of Ukraine's accession to the EU. With a view to shared values, among which is an unwavering commitment to freedom, democracy and the rule of law, the Participants will regularly consult each other in this regard.

VIII. Executive and technical arrangements

1. The Participants will carry out the cooperation under this Agreement in accordance with their international obligations and domestic legal order, including obligations arising from the Czech Republic's membership in the EU and NATO.
2. The Participants may, if necessary, designate focal/contact points for the development and implementation of bilateral projects in accordance with the areas of cooperation specified in this Agreement.
3. The focal/contact points, if designated, will individually promote the conduct of consultations in order to discuss, make the necessary arrangements and facilitate the required actions within the framework of this Agreement.

IX. Final Provisions

1. The Agreement will become operational from the date of its signature.
2. The cooperation and support under this Agreement will cover the time period of 10 (ten) years from the date of signature.
3. At the same time and in accordance with the G7 Joint Declaration, the Participants share the opinion that the Agreement is without prejudice to Ukraine pursuing a pathway toward future membership in the Euro-Atlantic Community.
4. In the event that Ukraine becomes a member of NATO before the end of cooperation under this Agreement, the Participants will modify and adapt the cooperation accordingly.
5. The Participants will inform each other about their intention to amend, extend or terminate the cooperation and support under this Agreement in writing through diplomatic channels, preferably 6 (six) months in advance.

Signed in Woodstock on 18 July 2024 in duplicate in Ukrainian, Czech and English languages.

For Ukraine: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President

For the Czech Republic: Petr Fiala, Prime Minister