MOSCOW, August 12 (RIA Novosti) - The Czech Republic is preparing to start sending weapons to democratic forces in Iraq fighting against Islamic State (IS) militants, Jan Pejsek, a representative of the Czech Defense Ministry, told RIA Novosti Tuesday.
“At the moment, the ministry is compiling a list of supplies, and taking into account our stock. Anyway, we’re not talking about tanks and war planes. We’re talking about Czech-produced firearms and auxiliary supplies – that is what can be sent over. We’re in the early stages of the process, so I can’t expand on the subject any further,” Pejsek said.
The Czech Foreign Ministry said the weapons delivered to the Iraqi democratic forces will be used to fight against Islamic State militants. Whether the forces that use the weapons are the Baghdad forces or Iraqi Kurds is not of the primary importance, according to the ministry.
Foreign Ministry spokesman David Frous said that negotiations are currently underway to determine whether the supplies will be sent directly or via a trade contract.
Iraqi Kurds are currently being supported by the United States, which has been providing humanitarian aid and is helping to ship weapons to battle the IS extremists.
The Islamic State is a Sunni group that has been conducting an offensive in Iraq since June. The group has already taken over large parts of the country, targeting the seizure of Baghdad. Also in June, the group announced the establishment of a caliphate on the Iraq-Syria border.
