Slovakian President Zuzana Čaputová has refused a plan by her country’s caretaker government to send further military aid to Ukraine, saying it doesn’t have the authority. Simultaneously, parties that oppose such support are in talks to form a government following last week’s election, AP reports.
The presidential office said that Čaputová, who has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine and visited Kyiv twice since the start of the Russian invasion, has not changed her view on the necessity of military assistance for Ukraine. But “approving a military aid package by the current outgoing government would create a risky precedent for the change of power after any future elections.”
Slovakia has been a major supporter of Ukraine, donating arms, including its fleet of MiG-29 fighter jets. According to a Slovak publication, Denník N, the Slovak Defence Ministry had prepared a new assistance package for Ukraine that Čaputová could have signed, but the president declined. Caretaker Prime Minister Lajos Ódor said he hopes that the new government “will be pro-European and will continue to help Ukraine.”
Ukraine is not happy with the Slovak President’s decision. “It is important to realise that the influence of Russian agents in Slovakia is absolutely insane,” said the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, Oleksiy Danilov.
Last Saturday’s parliamentary election was won by the left-wing nationalist-sovereigntist Smer party, whose leader, Robert Fico, a three-time former prime minister, vowed to halt sending weapons and military equipment to Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia since February of 2022. Fico prefers a much more neutral stance on the war and has called for peace talks. He has vowed to stick to his principles and a sovereigntist approach, despite a threat by the President of the European Socialists, Stefan Löfven, who said he would try to oust Smer from the political alliance if Fico’s rhetoric on Ukraine continues and his policies start to be applied by the government.
Fico is currently trying to form a coalition with the conservative Slovak National Party, which has a similar attitude to Ukraine, and Hlas, a social democratic party that split from Smer three years ago. Its leader, Peter Pellegrini, would prefer Slovakia to be more aligned with the EU and NATO policies. Yet, he has not ruled out governing with Smer in return for prestigious ministerial positions.
There are, however, high-ranking members of Hlas who share Fico’s sentiments on the war. Former Interior Minister Denisa Saková urged for peace negotiations to start and stated a few days ago that Ukraine would likely have to give up some of the territory occupied by Russia since 2014 to achieve peace. Pellegrini was quick to point out that Saková’s words were her own, not the official stance of Hlas.
According to a new opinion poll conducted by the Slovak Academy of Sciences, the majority of Slovakians (55%) are worried that military aid is prolonging the war.
