Rutte Visits Czech PM Babiš in Prague — Presses 5% Defense Spending Target, Ukraine Support; Diplomatic Repair Tour Underway

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte traveled to Prague on April 16 for talks with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš on Euro-Atlantic security, pressing the Czech Republic to accelerate its path to meeting NATO's 5% GDP defense spending target by 2035. The visit was part of Rutte's intensive European diplomatic circuit following the inconclusive April 8 White House meeting with Trump and the alliance crisis triggered by the Hormuz dispute. Rutte reiterated that NATO was transitioning from an 'unhealthy co-dependence on the United States' toward a 'transatlantic alliance grounded in true partnership' — the formulation that reflected European capitals' increasing need to demonstrate self-sufficiency without triggering a formal US rupture. Babiš discussed the Czech Republic's defense commitments and support for Ukraine. The Prague visit followed Rutte's April 15 Ukraine Defence Contact Group chairmanship in Berlin and marked the continuation of a European tour designed to reinforce alliance cohesion at the political level while European capitals simultaneously planned operationally for reduced US engagement.