Prague – Czechs in the collection of the Gift for Putin initiative collected over two million crowns for the Přemysl rocket launcher in four hours this morning. It is the fastest start of the Czech collection of weapons for the Ukrainian army, co-author of the project Martin Ondráček told ČTK. The target amount for the acquisition of the RM-70 rocket launcher with a package of 365 missiles is 50 million crowns. Ukraine has been defending itself against Russian aggression since last February 24.
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“The RM-70 is a mobile reactive artillery weapon that allows fire to be conducted by salvo and single shots. A salvo of forty rockets can perfectly plow an area of three hectares. Hence the name of the weapon – Přemysl. And since spring is approaching and with it work in the fields, Přemysl seems to us like a logical choice,” says the initiative on the website of the collection.
Czech ammunition manufacturer STV Group has already started modernizing and rebuilding the rocket launcher for the needs of the Ukrainian army, it should be ready for shipment by the end of April, Ondráček said.
The money is newly collected on the account of the initiative, and the funds will be handed over to the Ukrainian embassy only after the target amount has been reached. Ondráček believes that at least 3.5 million crowns will be collected by the evening of the first day of the collection.
An important part of the Gift for Putin is the choice of names for the weapons that are being collected. In the past, the Czechs already bought the Tomáš tank or the Viktor air defense system for Ukraine via this route. Přemysl is an old Czech name that Ukrainians also know, but it is very difficult to pronounce for other nations, said Ondráček. According to him, there is both a joke and a marketing potential in the name Přemysl.
The 24-ton weapon is carried by a Tatra chassis, the crew consists of four people. In the field, it can move at a speed of up to 25 kilometers per hour and has a range of over 20 kilometers. One salvo of 40 missiles covers an area of three hectares.
The project Gift for Putin was announced at the beginning of last May by businessman Dalibor Dědek. The collected money goes to the account of the Ukrainian embassy in Prague and, under the auspices of the Czech Ministry of Defense, it is used to buy military equipment from Czech manufacturers and suppliers in accordance with the requirements of the Ukrainian army.
