Hundreds of demonstrators rallied in Slovenia’s capital on Thursday, calling for the country to withdraw from NATO and redirect military spending toward public services, amid growing domestic debate over defence policy following the alliance’s summit in Ankara.
Protesters marched through central Ljubljana carrying banners reading “Israhell”, “NATO = Swamp” and “We no longer want to be NATO’s slaves”, while also calling for sanctions against the United States and Israel.
Organisers criticised Slovenia’s foreign policy, accusing successive governments of maintaining political, economic and academic ties with Israel despite expressing support for Palestinians.
“They are trying to justify higher defence spending and rearmament in the name of peace and security. We will not accept these lies,” one of the protest organisers, Tara Maslaković, said.
She argued that both the previous liberal government and the current conservative administration had failed to take meaningful action against Israel despite their public positions on the conflict in Gaza.
The demonstration came a day after NATO leaders met in Ankara, where they discussed continued support for Ukraine and reaffirmed plans to increase defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product by 2035.
Slovenia is expected to spend less than 2% of GDP on defence this year. Prime Minister Janez Janša has pledged an additional 300 million euros for defence spending as the government moves toward meeting NATO targets.
The protest also comes amid growing political debate over Slovenia’s membership in the alliance. Parliamentary Speaker Zoran Stevanović announced in April plans to hold a referendum on NATO membership and said this week that local elections scheduled for the autumn would be the most appropriate time to hold such a vote.
Although Slovenia remains committed to NATO obligations, the issue has become increasingly divisive as defence spending rises and public debate over the country’s foreign policy intensifies.