Babiš defends Czech defense spending after US criticism

18.09.2026 17:01 HotInfo

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš rejected US criticism of Czech defense spending on Friday. He was responding to remarks by Matthew Whitaker, the US ambassador to the North Atlantic Alliance, who pointed to the slow growth of the Czech defense budget and called its amount disappointing. ct24.ceskatelevize.cz ↗

According to Babiš, the Czech government’s draft budget for next year counts on defense spending amounting to two percent of gross domestic product. The prime minister described this amount as the maximum the Czech budget can afford. He also stated that, in absolute terms, the United States spends 167 times more on defense than the Czech Republic, and therefore the same level of spending cannot be demanded of the Czech Republic. novinky.cz ↗

Babiš also defended the current government’s approach and criticized his predecessors. According to him, the cabinet inherited state finances in poor condition and must take the overall budgetary options into account when making decisions. The prime minister also said that the country deals openly with its allies and that the Czech Republic is spending the maximum currently possible on defense. lidovky.cz ↗

At a summit of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Whitaker pointed out that the Czech Republic is among the NATO countries with the lowest defense spending. The dispute therefore concerns not only the planned size of next year’s budget, but also the allies’ expectations regarding the speed at which the Czech military’s capabilities are strengthened.