Fico seeks EU compensation for military equipment Slovakia sent to Ukraine
Photo: Robert Fico (Getty Images)
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico plans to discuss compensation for equipment transferred to Ukraine with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, according to Aktuality.
Speaking after the European Union–Western Balkans summit in Montenegro, the Slovak Prime Minister said he intends to raise the issue at the next EU summit later this month.
"This is a problem of an acute shortage of financial resources because funds that were supposed to be used to pay for certain things were directed straight to Ukraine," Fico said.
He also noted that he raised the issue of the Visegrad Group (V4) format during the summit.
The Slovak Prime Minister expressed hope that after Slovakia assumes the group's presidency in July, it will operate in a V4+ format and that key EU representatives will also take part in the discussions.
The Visegrad Group currently consists of Hungary, Poland, Czechia, and Slovakia.
The bloc was created as a platform for advancing Central European interests within the EU. However, its influence has weakened significantly in recent years due to disagreements between the government of former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and the pro-European leadership in Poland.
As previously reported, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš said that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz could lead EU negotiations aimed at ending Russian aggression against Ukraine.
Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel was also mentioned as a potential candidate, although she has indicated that she does not intend to take on such a role.
