Russia Fico for talks with Putin in the Kremlin
Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico met unannounced with Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks in the Kremlin on Sunday. This was reported by Russian state television. It is the first trip by an official representative of the Slovak Republic to Russia since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. According to unconfirmed reports, Fico was only expected to arrive in Moscow in the coming days.
22.12.2024, 18:30
SDA
There was initially no official information about the content of the talks. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov hinted that Fico may have wanted to talk to Putin about natural gas supplies.
The Slovakian Prime Minister, who is often criticized by his opponents as "pro-Russian", also wants to travel to Moscow next spring. He has accepted an invitation to commemorate World War II on May 9, 2025, the government office in Bratislava announced at the end of November.
Fico is considered a critic of the EU and NATO's Ukraine policy
Slovakia, an EU and NATO member state, borders directly on Ukraine. Unlike Hungary, Slovakia has so far supported all of the EU's Ukraine aid and sanctions against Russia without exception. In striking contrast to this, the left-wing populist Fico has repeatedly attracted attention by publicly criticizing the Ukraine policy of the EU and NATO. For example, he repeatedly called on the EU to broker peace instead of "prolonging the killing and destruction in Ukraine" by supplying weapons.
In terms of population, Slovakia was one of the most committed military supporters of the Russian invasion of its neighboring country after it began. After his return to government in October 2023, Fico ended direct arms deliveries from army stocks. However, the Slovakian arms industry continues to produce military equipment for Ukraine on a commercial basis.
