- The Party of European Socialists expelled Smer-SD from its ranks.
- The decision to exclude was unanimous.
- The General Secretary of PES criticized the actions of Smer.
- Smer-SD plans to join another faction in the European Parliament.
- Beňová prefers cooperation with the Patrioti for Europe group.
Party of European Socialists (PES) on Friday at the congress in Amsterdam decided on the definitive exclusion of Prime Minister Robert Fico from the Slovak political party Smer-SD from its ranks, informs TASR. PES General Secretary Giacomo Filibeck said before the vote that the actions of Smer-SD in recent years were “grossly and strongly contrary to the values and principles of our family”. The decision of the PES members was unanimous.
The recent working assembly of Smer-SD took note of the information about the proposal to exclude him from the ranks of the European Socialists, which characterized as the result of the gradual distancing of the Slovak party from the ideas in Brussels.
The Slovak Prime Minister stated the previous week that PES chairman Stefan Löfven had interpreted several reservations to him during the phone call. Some members of the European Socialists, for example, are said to be bothered by the fact that Fico met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and visited Moscow and Beijing to celebrate the end of World War II. PES responded to TASR’s request to specify the reasons for the proposal by issuing a press release on the day of the decision.
The Labor Assembly of Smer also authorized its MEPs to negotiate for inclusion in another existing or emerging faction in the European Parliament. Until now, they have acted in it as unclassified. “We have had an offer from the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group for a long time, which I personally prefer,” the MEP told TASR Monika Beňová, which left the group of European socialists on its own in October 2023 – after the PES presidency decided to suspend Smer’s membership.
Beňová added that her colleagues are also discussing the possible creation of a new faction, but she is “a little skeptical” in this regard. In her opinion, the party as a whole should have left PES earlier. Smer-SD’s membership in PES has been suspended until now. The presidency of the European party thus decided in October 2023 to deviate from the values of the left group and create a government coalition with the Slovak National Party (SNS).
