Pavel: Efforts not to anger US have undermined NATO summits

NATO summits in recent years have fallen victim to efforts not to anger the alliance’s most powerful member, the US, says Czech President Petr Pavel. He made the comment in a debate with members of the public in the town of Třebíč. Mr. Pavel said a forthcoming NATO summit in Turkey would benefit from a return to informal discussions between leaders; these achieve more than mere formal approval of pre-agreed matters, he said.

The president insists he should represent Czechia at the summit in Ankara in early July, in line with general custom. However, Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, who has previously expressed opposition to Mr. Pavel’s involvement, says a decision on who will make up the country’s delegation will be made on June 22.