US NATO Envoy Criticises Czech Republic Over Defence Spending Shortfall

The United States ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, has criticised the Czech Republic for failing to make sufficient progress on defence spending, telling a security conference in Prague that the country risks falling to the bottom of the alliance.

Speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies' Prague Defence Summit on Friday, Whitaker said it was "disappointing" that Prague had not advanced further towards the defence commitments agreed at The Hague summit in 2025. He said he had delivered the message in person to Czech officials over the previous two days.

"Unfortunately, the Czech Republic is trending towards the bottom of the alliance when it comes to defence spending," he said, adding that the country must remain committed to increasing its military budget.

The Czech Republic has repeatedly fallen short of NATO's minimum benchmark of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defence. It is set to miss that threshold again this year, with the level expected to be reached only in 2027. The country has also not laid out a clear path towards NATO's newer targets of 3.5% of GDP on core defence and a further 1.5% on defence-related infrastructure by 2035.

Whitaker reaffirmed Washington's commitment to NATO and to defending allied territory, but stressed that allies are expected to contribute their fair share. "We expect our allies to step up," he said.

The spending shortfall has been compounded by political change in Prague. The government of populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who returned to power at the end of 2025, reduced the defence budget proposed by the previous administration to around 1.7–1.8% of GDP for this year, with plans to reach 2% next year. Babis has argued that the country needs resources for infrastructure and hospitals, leaving limited funds for defence.