The third gold coin of the Czech Mint from the four-part miniseries commemorating the events of the “Prague Spring“ is dedicated to the invasion of the Warsaw Pact troops.

The liberal reforms of the “Prague Spring“, which slowly led to the democratisation of Czechoslovakia, terrified not only the representatives of the Soviet Union, but also domestic conservative communists. They feared to loose power, they wrote a “letter of invitation“ in which they asked Leonid Brezhnev to provide assistance by all means to save the state, which was wracked by counter-revolution, nationalism and anti-communist sentiments. The chairman of the Supreme Soviet was happy to oblige: On the night of 20-21 August 1968, the armies of the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of Poland, the People's Republic of Hungary and the People's Republic of Bulgaria invaded Czechoslovakia. The troops of the German Democratic Republic also had a small presence. Only the troops of Romania and Albania which are members of the Warsaw Pact states did not take part in the invasion. The first wave consisted of 100 000 soldiers, 2300 tanks and 700 aircraft. The number of invaders who occupied strategic targets throughout Czechoslovakia then gradually rose to three quarters of a million. From the outset, the invasion was met with spontaneous resistance and demonstrations across all sections of the population, with scores of Czechoslovakians paying with their lives for their courage. Top politicians also condemned the occupation. Therefore, Czechoslovakia's leaders, led by the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, Alexander Dubček, were taken to Russia, where, under pressure, they signed the “Moscow Protocol“, which legitimised “fraternal aid“ from the Soviet Union and its satellites. This unprecedented act of aggression, which grossly violated the elementary principles of international law, ended the attempt to build “socialism with a human face“. Instead, an era of “normalisation“  began…

The reverse side of the coin, which is the work of the medal maker Mgr. Art. Miroslav Hric, Art. D., presents a Soviet tank. The armored machine overshadows the building of the National Museum, which was extensively damaged in August 1968. The composition of the reverse side is supplemented with a flock of frightened birds flying towards the sky and the inscription VPÁD VOJSK VARŠAVSKĚ SMLOUVY. The obverse side of the coin then follows the reverse side - presenting a torn barbed wire and birds flying to freedom. As the coins of the Czech Mint are issued with the foreign licence of the island of Niue, the obverse side bears its national emblem, the nominal value TEN DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2023.

The events of the revolutionary year 1968 continue on the fourth coin. The complete collection can be stored in a collector's case, which is also offered by the Czech Mint.