Bratislava has decided to freeze decisions on military support for Kiev until a new government is formed, following the electoral success of parties opposed to aid to neighboring Ukraine, according to the presidency.
The President of Slovakia, Zuzana CaputovaPhoto: VLADIMIR SIMICEK / AFP / Profimedia
“President (Zuzana) Caputova shares the point of view of (resigned) Prime Minister (Ludovit) Odor, according to which the decision on this issue should reflect the results of the recent parliamentary elections,” presidential spokesman Martin Strizinec told AFP.
“A decision to provide military assistance at this time would set a precedent for future shifts in political power. In addition, the current resigned technical government has limited powers,” he added.
He did not specify whether any major decisions would be made in the near future.
He also emphasized that President Zuzana Caputova “has not changed her position on military aid to Ukraine and will continue to support it within the limits of the possibilities still available to the Slovak armed forces.”
On Monday, the president entrusted the formation of the new government to populist Robert Fico, who opposes military aid to Ukraine and is considered pro-Russian.
Fico’s party, Smer-SD, won 23 percent of the vote, edging out the centrist Progressive Slovakia (PS, 18 percent) in Saturday’s election.
During the election campaign, Fico, 59, promised that Slovakia would not send “a single bullet” into Ukraine and called for improved relations with Russia.
The former prime minister also recently stated that “the war in Ukraine began in 2014, when Ukrainian fascists killed civilian victims of Russian nationality,” echoing unproven Russian claims.
On Sunday, he said his country had “bigger problems” than aid to Ukraine, despite the fact that Slovakia, a member of the EU and NATO, has so far been one of the top European donors to Ukraine as a proportion of its GDP .
“We think Ukraine is a huge tragedy for everyone. If Smer will receive the task of forming a cabinet (…), we will do everything in our power to organize peace talks as soon as possible”, declared Fico.
To govern, Fico will need a coalition to obtain a clear majority in Parliament, with his party securing 42 seats.
The left-wing party Hlas-SD (27 seats), formed around dissidents from Smer, is one of its potential partners.
The two parties could team up with the nationalist SNS party, which won 10 seats, to achieve a majority of 79 seats.
