The Czech Republic has summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry to protest against suspected Russian cyberattacks on the European Union and NATO member state's institutions and infrastructure.
According to the CTK agency, the diplomat arrived there on Monday afternoon.
"We have called on the Russian Federation to refrain from these actions, which are contrary to UN norms and its own obligations," Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said afterwards.
Meanwhile, it has been announced that the Czech Republic's liberal-conservative government has officially recalled its ambassador to Russia, Vítězslav Pivoňka, with effect from the end of May. According to media reports, the diplomat has not been in Moscow for months. A successor has not yet been appointed. The embassy will be temporarily headed by an embassy secretary, the reports said.
The Czech Republic accuses the hacker group APT28 of the Russian military intelligence service GRU of being behind numerous cyberattacks.
Since last year, a security vulnerability has been exploited to gain access to email accounts, the Foreign Ministry in Prague announced.
Other activities involving internet routers were uncovered some time ago in cooperation with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Following a meeting with his German counterpart Nancy Faeser on Friday, Czech Interior Minister Vít Rakušan emphasized that they wanted to send a clear signal to Russia: "We are not helpless victims: We are states that know how to defend themselves."
The public never learns about most cyberthreats because they are nipped in the bud, he added.