The Czech government plans to increase defense spending by 36 billion CZK next year, allowing the Czech Republic to meet its NATO commitment of spending 2% of GDP on defence for the first time. Prime Minister Andrej Babiš announced the plan before departing for the NATO summit in Ankara, where allied leaders are expected to discuss military spending, the war in Ukraine and the future direction of the alliance. The Ministry of Defense received 154.79 billion CZK in this year’s state budget, equivalent to roughly 1.8 percent of GDP.