A dispute is escalating in the Czech Republic over who is allowed to represent the country at the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara on July 7 and 8.
Liberal President Petr Pavel announced on his website on Tuesday that he had filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court in Brno to give legal backing to his participation in the meeting of leaders of the defence alliance.
The right-wing government had previously decided to send Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Defence Minister Jaromir Zůna and Foreign Minister Petr Macinka to the summit but not the president.
Some observers suspect the cabinet’s decision is an act of revenge because Pavel has repeatedly criticized government projects in public.
Most recently, he opposed the planned abolition of broadcasting licence fees and the associated cuts at public-service media.
In the past, as a rule, either only the president or the president and prime minister together represent the country at NATO summits. The Czech Republic has been a NATO member since 1999.
Former NATO general Pavel said it was his duty not only to exercise the head of state’s powers but also to defend them. "Not for my sake but for all presidents, male and female, who come after me," the 64-year-old said.
The Czech constitution says the president represents the country externally. The constitutional judges must now decide how this is to be interpreted.
While Pavel has long called for higher defence spending, the right-wing populist Prime Minister Babiš is however sceptical. He recently acknowledged that the Czech Republic would not meet the NATO target of 2% of gross domestic product for defence spending this year.
"First we have to put public finances in order," the businessman and billionaire stressed.
