Fico cites assassination attempt in response to Ukraine's Foreign Ministry criticism

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico voiced disagreement with Ukraine’s foreign ministry, which accused him of using "openly offensive rhetoric towards Ukraine and the Ukrainian people."

"I wish Ukraine an immediate, just peace and an end to the senseless killing of Slavs," Fico stressed.

The prime minister said Slovakia is among the countries providing the most intensive assistance to Ukraine, but added that "neighborly relations cannot be a one-way ticket."

At the same time, he expressed outrage that "Ukraine expects everyone to always meet its demands."

According to the prime minister, Slovakia supplies Ukraine with critical electricity deliveries. At the same time, Kyiv uses European legislation that "obliges us to provide Slovak infrastructure for the transit of gas to its territory."

"However, the Ukrainian president stopped the transit of gas to Slovakia through Ukrainian territory, causing significant damage to Slovakia," Fico said.

In his view, the war in Ukraine has distorted freedom of speech in the EU. He noted that any opinion differing from the dominant one is harshly criticized and condemned, "even if it is based on objective information."

Fico rejected such "deliberate distortions of fundamental rights" and emphasized that, with all due respect to Ukrainian diplomacy, "the right to a different opinion expressed in a normal way is the foundation of democracy, and restricting this right is the beginning of the end of democracy."

"As the head of government of a sovereign state, I will retain the right to freedom of speech and to hold a different view, even if it causes discomfort among my colleagues in the EU and in neighboring Ukraine. Even if my sovereign position on the war in Ukraine nearly cost me my life," the Slovak prime minister concluded.

Controversial statement

On Sunday, August 10, Robert Fico claimed that Ukraine would suffer the most regardless of the outcome of talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin following their meeting in Alaska.

He referred to an old African proverb saying, "It doesn’t matter whether elephants fight or mate, the grass always suffers. Regardless of how the ‘elephants’ negotiations on August 15 end, the ‘grass’, in this case, Ukraine, will suffer," Fico said.

Ukraine’s foreign ministry stated that such remarks insult the memory of those killed in the war and the suffering of millions of Ukrainian families.

The ministry warned Fico against using "unfriendly folk allegories and attempts to boost his party’s political ratings through such statements."

Late last year, the Slovak prime minister threatened to halt electricity exports to Ukraine.

He intended this as retaliation for Kyiv’s refusal to continue the transit of Russian gas to Europe, including through Slovak territory.