The new Czech nationalist governing coalition will not increase defense spending in the state budget, according to Tomio Okamura, speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and leader of the minority-governing SPD.

Speaking to reporters after Monday’s coalition council meeting, Okamura said that spending equivalent to around 2 percent of gross domestic product was enough, despite calls from the United States for European member states to spend more to defend themselves.

“The 2 percent of GDP plus or minus is sufficient,” Okamura said, dismissing earlier plans by the previous government to raise defense outlays further. The former center-right cabinet led by Petr Fiala of the Civic Democratic Party had pledged to gradually increase defense spending to 3 percent of GDP by 2030.

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The government of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš was set to approve the draft state budget for this year at its Monday cabinet meeting. Czechia has been operating under a provisional budget since the start of the year. Okamura said the budget would be presented by Finance Minister Alena Schillerová of ANO and stressed that the coalition’s priorities lay elsewhere.

“We prioritized money for Czech citizens, money for Czech citizens, not for armaments,” Okamura said. “We really will not increase money for armaments, or if you like, for defense.”

NATO currently expects its members to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense. Last year, the Czech Republic spent 171.1 billion crowns (€7.1 billion) on defense, equivalent to 2.02 percent of GDP, meeting both domestic legal requirements and the alliance’s existing target. However, NATO members agreed last June to raise overall defense-related spending, with a goal of 3.5 percent of GDP on core defense by 2035 and an additional 1.5 percent of GDP on related non-military investments.

ANO has repeatedly said it does not question meeting the existing NATO benchmark, but Andrej Babiš has previously described the alliance’s newer spending goals as unrealistic.

President Petr Pavel warned over the weekend that abandoning NATO commitments would carry consequences. Speaking on Nova television, he said that Czechia must meet its defense spending obligations if it expects security guarantees from the alliance. If the country chooses not to do so, politicians must clearly explain to citizens how they would otherwise ensure national security, Pavel said.