Czech populist politician Andrej Babis' ANO party has signed a coalition agreement with right-wing allies, taking a step towards regaining power after its election victory.
Babis won the election on promises of increased spending and by opposing the European Union's policies on climate and migration.
Former Czech Prime Minister Babis joined forces with the Motorists' Party, which is skeptical of climate change, and the SPD party, which is against the EU and NATO.
Together, the three parties have 108 seats in the 200-member lower house of parliament. Babis has said he wants to form a government by mid-December in order to approve the 2026 budget and attend a summit of EU leaders.
An ANO-led cabinet, if appointed, would replace the center-right government that was focused on reducing the budget deficit and supporting Ukraine, which is facing an invasion launched by neighboring Russia.
Babis, who served as Czech prime minister from 2017 to 2021, has vowed to end a Prague-led, foreign-funded program to supply Ukraine with ammunition. He has also promised to cut off all aid to Ukraine from the Czech budget, saying he wants to use the money for his own citizens.
Babis has taken a tougher approach towards the EU, promising to reject the bloc's planned scheme for allocating quotas to households, which is expected to be launched in 2017. If he rejects such a scheme, it could lead to a legal clash with the EU.
The coalition's draft agenda states that the EU Green Deal for decarbonization is "unsustainable", while the goal of ending sales of petrol cars by 3035 is "unacceptable". /REL
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