New Delhi, Jan. 14 -- The Czech Republic's new government led by populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis was set to face a mandatory confidence vote in Parliament over its agenda aimed at steering the country away from supporting Ukraine and rejecting some key European Union policies.

The debate in the 200-seat lower house of Parliament, where the coalition has a majority of 108 seats, began Tuesday. Every new administration must win the vote to govern.

Babis, previously prime minister in two governments from 2017-2021, and his ANO, or YES, movement, won big in the country's October election and formed a majority coalition with two small political groups, the Freedom and Direct Democracy anti-migrant party and the right-wing Motorists for ...