22.04.2026, Prague.
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš does not want President Petr Pavel to attend the July NATO summit due to disagreements between the cabinet and the president over the military budget, Rossa Primavera News Agency Europe Desk notes.
On April 13, the Czech Republic issued a decree on air transport of officials, according to which Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, along with Foreign Minister Petr Mačinka and Defense Minister Jaromír Zuna, will go to the July NATO summit. President Petr Pavel is not listed.
Pavel, a retired army general and former chairman of the NATO Military Committee, disagrees with this decision. He has attended all alliance summits since taking office and is not ready to give that up.
On April 16, the president told journalists that he considers the government’s decree on air transport regarding the NATO summit more of a travel plan than a confirmation of the delegation’s composition. Earlier, in a letter to Babiš, he stated his desire to lead the Czech delegation at the alliance summit.
It should be noted that there are fundamental disagreements between the government led by Andrej Babiš and President Petr Pavel. Pavel holds a clear pro-European position, while Babiš’s government is ready to defend national interests on a number of issues, including migration legislation and the climate agenda. There are also disagreements regarding aid to the Kiev regime: Pavel takes a pro-Ukrainian position, while Babiš’s government behaves much more cautiously on this matter, preferring to focus on the interests of the Czech Republic rather than Ukraine.
All these aspects played a role in Babiš’s reluctance to see Pavel as part of the delegation at the NATO summit. However, the most significant factor in this situation was likely the dispute over the military budget. Pavel has repeatedly stated that the Czech Republic’s defense spending for 2026 is too low. Babiš, for his part, believes that budget issues are exclusively a matter for the cabinet. And in his opinion, the president could only get in the way at the NATO summit if he promotes a position that contradicts the government’s stance.
“The defense budget and strategy are the responsibility of the cabinet. I cannot imagine how we could lead the delegation together. Would we speak at the same time? It makes no sense,” Babiš said.
Pavel also indicates that the defense budget is precisely the stumbling block in this case. On April 16, in an interview with Reflex, he stated, “In the end, perhaps both Andrej Babiš and I will go to the summit, and he will present the government’s position because he believes he can convince the allies, and even US President Donald Trump, that the budget proposed by the government meets the terms of the commitments.”
Pavel clearly does not intend to give up. At the NATO summit, initiatives to further increase defense spending will likely be promoted. Pavel is a staunch supporter of such initiatives. Therefore, Babiš and his government, who believe that the Czech Republic cannot endlessly increase military spending, do not want the president to attend the summit.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
