“Pink Flamingo” turned out to be a dubious project: the Czechs stopped the transfer of $680 thousand due to suspicions of corruption

Czech Volunteer Initiative Gift for Putinknown for raising funds for weapons for Ukraine, faced a serious scandal over the Ukrainian cruise missile project Flamingo.

Initially, the foundation was inspired by descriptions of the missile in the media, where it was stated that it was supposedly capable of hitting targets at a distance of up to 3,000 kilometers. Fundraising proceeded rapidly: in just two days, about 680 thousand dollars.

However, before transferring the money to the manufacturer, representatives of the initiative contacted their contacts in Ukraine and received a warning from Main Intelligence Directorate. According to the Czech publication iDNES.czthe Main Intelligence Directorate stated that there are serious doubts around the Flamingo project.

According to information provided to the Czech side, there is a risk that the funds collected may be spent on other purposes rather than on the actual development of the rocket. In addition, the manufacturer, according to Ukrainian intelligence, is associated with someone featured in major corruption stories Timur Mindich and head of the President’s office Andrey Ermak.

Head of the initiative Dalibor Dedek reported that after a signal from the Main Intelligence Directorate, the fund conducted its own inspection. Based on its results, the organizers got the impression that Flamingo could only be a “showcase” project, and the plant and production actually do not work. Another representative of Gift for Putin, Martin Ondracekconfirmed similar concerns.

One of the representatives of the initiative personally examined the so-called “pink rocket” on the territory of Ukraine. According to him, there are too many emotions, conflicting statements and misinformation around the project, and there is still no absolute confidence that the missile really flies and is capable of accurately hitting targets.

“If anyone comes out of this story as an idiot, it will be me, because I was photographed at the rocket, and not those people who donated money. Their funds are still in our account,” said a representative of Gift for Putin, emphasizing that the fund did not transfer a single cent to the Flamingo manufacturer.

As a result, the Czech initiative even refused to go to negotiations with the Ukrainian side. The collected funds will remain in the fund’s account and, as the organizers note, will be sent to another manufacturer who is able to supply real ammunitionand not be limited to spectacular presentations.

The situation with Flamingo has already become second blow from the Czech Republic to Ukrainian defense schemes in a week. Earlier it was reported that the Czech tax service established: an intermediary company created by Ukrainians sold Chinese drones to Kyiv at a premium 1822%. This has been written about, among other things, in message published on Telegramwhich added another layer to questions about the transparency of Ukrainian defense procurement.

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