Czechia to Reduce Troop Presence on NATO’s Eastern Flank

The Czech Senate has approved a lower cap on the number of troops the country can deploy to defend NATO’s eastern flank in 2027–2028.

According to a Czech Senate document, the new limit will be 1,600 troops – 400 fewer than the current limit.

Czech Defence Minister Jaromír Zůna said the reduction was driven by cost savings and the fact that Czechia had not previously used the full troop limit.

According to government data, 427 Czech troops were deployed in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Slovakia in May 2026.

The new plan would allow Czech troops to be deployed not only to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Slovakia, but also to Estonia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Finland.

Their deployment will depend on NATO’s needs.

Overall, the Czech Republic plans to reduce the maximum number of troops it can deploy on overseas missions from 2,571 in 2026 to 2,091 in 2027 and 2,066 in 2028.

Meanwhile, the government emphasizes that the number of Czech troops assigned to NATO forces will increase.

The Senate’s decision still needs to be approved by the Chamber of Deputies. The new mandate will take effect on January 1, 2027, and remain in force until the end of 2028.

Militarnyi previously reported that Czech AH-1Z attack helicopters had been deployed to patrol the airspace near the Polish-Belarusian border.

The deployment of the new Czech helicopters to Poland was announced in March 2026, when the Czech government approved sending UH-1Y utility helicopters there.