EU pushes joint defense budget and tighter border controls amid political disputes

Mikuláš Peksa, a Czech lawmaker, called for a common EU defence budget, sparking heated debate in the Czech parliament over migration, Frontex and a potential European army. President Petr Pavel vetoed a government proposal that would allow greater state borrowing for defence spending, prompting Prime Minister Andrej Babiš to accuse the president of political activism and igniting a broader political clash.

In Slovakia, President Peter Pellegrini endorsed an initiative by EU member states for an extraordinary meeting of interior ministers to address the situation in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. He stressed that protecting the EU’s external borders is essential for citizens’ security and warned against the use of illegal migration as a tool of political or hybrid pressure, pledging Slovak support for coordinated EU action.