Czech President Pavel wins court order to join NATO summit

President Petr Pavel filed a competency lawsuit after the Czech government initially excluded him from the delegation for the NATO summit in Ankara on 7‑8 July. The Constitutional Court issued a preliminary measure obliging the government to add the president to the official Czech delegation and to secure his accreditation, specifying that the order applies only to this summit. The government had planned to send Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Defence Minister Jaromír Zůna and Foreign Minister Petr Macinka without the president. The swift ruling aimed to avoid diplomatic complications and has sparked a broader constitutional debate over whether the president or the government decides the country's representation at major international meetings. Opposition parties (STAN, TOP 09) called for the resignation of Foreign Minister Macinka, while former President Václav Klaus condemned the court as politically activist. The dispute highlights tensions within the Czech parliamentary system over the balance of powers.