Czechs Urge EU Support for Radio Free Europe After Trump Cuts US Funding
Prague Seeks European Backing as US Pulls Financial Support for Global Broadcaster
The Czech Republic is appealing for European Union support to keep Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) operational after the Trump administration abruptly cut its funding.
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky emphasized RFE/RL’s importance, calling it “one of the few credible sources of information in authoritarian states like Iran, Belarus, and Afghanistan.”
For decades, the US government-funded broadcaster has played a key role in countering censorship, reaching millions in Eastern Europe during the Cold War and promoting democratic values where state-controlled media dominated.
However, Elon Musk, who has overseen cost-cutting measures under former President Donald Trump, dismissed RFE/RL as “radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1 billion a year of US taxpayer money.” In response, RFE/RL’s president and CEO, Stephen Capus, warned that terminating the broadcaster’s funding would be a major win for autocratic regimes.
"The Iranian Ayatollahs, Chinese communist leaders, and autocrats in Moscow and Minsk would celebrate the demise of RFE/RL after 75 years," Capus stated.
The independent Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) also expressed alarm, warning that thousands of journalists—many reporting from repressive regimes—would be severely affected. Some, the CPJ noted, were already facing "grave danger" due to their work in heavily censored nations.
RFE/RL’s Global Reach and the Push for European Backing
RFE/RL reports that it reaches a weekly audience of nearly 50 million people across 23 countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Iran, Afghanistan, and several former Soviet republics in Central Asia and the Caucasus.
Recognizing the broadcaster's significance, Foreign Minister Lipavsky told the BBC that Prague was working to form a coalition of countries willing to support RFE/RL. However, he acknowledged the need for diplomatic caution.
"We need to be very careful and mindful of the USA, which has this operation on their side," he noted. "But we will try to do everything to keep this organization, with its 75-year legacy, afloat."
US Funding Cut Sparks Backlash
For decades, RFE/RL, along with Radio Free Asia and Voice of America (VOA), has relied on funding from the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM). However, Trump signed an executive order on Friday to terminate that funding after Musk publicly criticized the broadcasters on X, simply stating: "Shut them down."
The decision marks a stark contrast to the media policies of countries like Russia, China, and Iran, which have continued to pour resources into state-run broadcasters as part of their global influence strategies.
The funding cut has already had severe consequences, with reports indicating that most full-time staff at VOA have been placed on administrative leave, while contractors—many responsible for non-English language programming—have been laid off, according to AFP.
With US support withdrawn, Prague’s call for EU intervention could determine whether RFE/RL can continue its mission or if it faces closure after 75 years of broadcasting independent news into some of the world's most tightly controlled media environments.
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