Czech Conservative Petr Pavel wins presidency

The independent candidate supported by the conservative parties, Petr Pavel, won the second round of the elections and became the new president of the Czech Republic.

Pavel, a retired general of the Czech Army, won 58.3% of the votes and defeated former Prime Minister Andrej Babis. He will succeed leftist Milos Zeman, a staunch supporter of Vladimir Putin who went so far as to say that "the Russians were not crazy to attack Ukraine.”

"When values win, there are no winners or losers. We are one community and we must stand together. Thank you," said Pavel after winning.

The new president showed his commitment to the Czech Republic's membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU). In fact, Pavel was chairman of the NATO Military Committee.