Prague to miss NATO spending goal in 2026

The Czech Republic's Prime Minister Andrej Babis has said his country will likely fall short of NATO's longstanding benchmark goal of 2 percent of GDP for total defense spending this year, amid United States' call for its allies to increase the budget.

"We will do our best" to meet the pledge, Babis said in an interview with the Financial Times newspaper, adding that his populist government was struggling with a budget shortfall due to overspending by his pro-European Union predecessor.

Babis said Prague remains committed to hitting NATO's target for core military expenditure by 2035, but argued allies should prioritize capability improvements over easily manipulated spending targets.

Despite signing the 2026 budget into law in March, Czech President Petr Pavel — who has clashed with the Babis government over its plans to scale back defense spending — warned that military outlays do not match rising security threats or NATO spending commitments.

"The president views the state of the defense budget with great concern," his office said in a statement at the time. The "defense budget is essentially stagnating and does not correspond to the obligations to NATO allies", it added.

It's understood Prague's debate over meeting higher targets reflects fiscal constraints, procurement delays, and pressure to upgrade combat readiness and munitions stockpiles.

European allies are bracing for the next NATO summit due to be held from July 7-8 in Ankara, Turkiye, expecting reproaches from the United States over defense-spending gaps.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly pushed allies to boost defense outlays and plans to tell NATO the US would reduce the pool of US military capabilities available to aid European members in a major crisis.

This goal has become a growing priority for the US since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, and with what Washington perceives as insufficient European backing for its war against Iran.

In his remarks to the FT, Babis claimed his personal rapport with Trump affords Prague a political buffer that other European capitals lack.

"I am a Trumpist," Babis said. "I met him five times and was criticized by others, but we should have an advantage," he added.

At an Asian security forum on Saturday, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told fellow defense ministers: "The era of the United States subsidizing the defense of wealthy nations is over. We need partners, not protectorates."

"When our interests align, we act together with focused resolve," he added. "When our interests diverge, we adjust pragmatically without the drama or the moralizing. I think Western Europe might take note."

"Europe and NATO have some big decisions to make," he said.

A STEM agency poll conducted last month found that 62 percent of Czechs believe the US administration is weakening NATO's defense capacity.

Despite Babis's past praise, 63 percent of supporters of the Czech PM's right-wing ANO movement feel the US leader is undermining NATO, reported Radio Prague International.

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