Babiš’s statement questioning Czechia’s assistance to NATO allies causes uproar

Presidential candidate Andrej Babiš caused an uproar when he questioned his country’s possible assistance to its closest NATO allies in Sunday’s debate on Czech Television ahead of the second round of presidential elections this weekend. When asked if he would send troops to help Poland or any of the Baltic states in the event of an attack, Mr Babiš replied “certainly not.”

Mr Babiš’s statement was immediately criticised by top politicians, including Latvia’s foreign minister Edgars Rinkevic, making headlines both in Czech and foreign media.

On Monday, Mr Babiš corrected his statement, saying that in case a NATO member state was attacked, he would abide by NATO’s Article 5 collective-defence clause.