The highest possible score was 17 points – this was exactly what was achieved by several MPs from the German populist-left BSW party of Sahra Wagenknecht, but also by two Slovak MEPs from the Republic – Milan Mazurek and Milan Uhrík. This means that in all monitored votes, they either voted against resolutions condemning Russia or did not participate in the votes at all. Detailed records for individual resolutions may differ, but their overall formula is completely unambiguous.
The ranking also shows that in the new political reality of the European Parliament, not only a strong pro-Kremlin bloc has emerged, but at the same time its diversity has increased. In the highest ranks there are deputies from the extreme right, hard nationalism, but also from the radical left. It is a phenomenon that was already present before the 2024 elections, but after them it became stronger and more unified.
The German BSW, the Slovak Republic, the Polish Confederation and Czech representatives of the far-right SPD or non-aligned MEPs share the complete dominance in the top ten. It is true for all of them that their votes are almost one hundred percent contrary to the majority line of the European Parliament and in some cases also to the official foreign policy of their own governments.
Slovak MEPs in the wider context of voting
The high ranking of Slovak MEPs is not accidental. The ranking does not focus only on the harshest or most controversial resolutions, but covers the entire spectrum of documents – from condemnation of Russian attacks on civilians, to recognition of the illegal deportation of children, to criticism of the Belarusian regime. It is precisely in this width that the Slovakian footprint is most pronounced: while Uhrík and Mazurek are absolute units, the members of Smer remain stable in the second ten of the ranking.
Erik Kaliňák has 15 votes against, which puts him just behind the TOP group. Similarly, Judita Laššáková and Ľuboš Blaha recorded only one or two points lower values. For all three, if the resolution criticized the Kremlin, they always voted against it.
At the same time, these data confirm a trend that can also be seen in domestic politics in Slovakia: parties that criticize sanctions, question aid to Ukraine, or talk about the need for “peace” defined by an immediate cessation of hostilities, regardless of the situation on the ground, transfer the same attitude to the European Parliament. However, many of the proposals concerned sanctions against Russia, but only purely humanitarian laws in aid of Ukraine, or condemnation of Lukashenka’s authoritarian leadership in Belarus.
Smer politicians in the company of radical politicians
Their recent expulsion from the Party of European Socialists (PES) also shows that Smer MEPs have moved significantly away from their original left-wing values. Today in the European Parliament, Smer is practically voting hand in hand with the radical right and nationalists – and the new ranking of pro-Kremlin MPs only confirms this. In the list of the 21 most loyal supporters of Russian positions, Smer MPs found themselves in the company of parties such as the German BSW, AfD, Bulgarian Revival and the Polish Confederation.
explains that Smer has been moving towards the extreme right for a long time, especially in the issues of migration, minority policy and cultural conservatism. According to her, it is no accident that the party is taking over more and more elements of the agenda that was once promoted only by nationalists and the extreme right.
“The direction has certain political positions that resonate with what we would call the extreme right,” he says, pointing out that the shift already occurred during cooperation with the SNS, and the party never returned to its original social democratic position after it and apparently will not.
The ranking of EUobserver and Novaya Gazeta Europe shows that Smer today finds itself in almost the same camp as the radical right and part of the hard left in the votes on Russia. While the Republic of Milan Uhrík and Milan Mazurek is among the absolute top of the pro-Kremlin votes, Smer MPs are right behind them – with a high number of votes against or abstaining from most resolutions condemning Russian aggression or the Belarusian regime.
It is particularly telling who Smer meets in this list. The strongest group in the ranking is the German party Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), which outwardly presents itself as left-populist and anti-elitist, but in the votes on Russia it is one of the most reliable allies of the Kremlin. The think tank’s analysis points out that almost all the votes of its deputies on fourteen key resolutions were either against or abstained from voting.
BSW builds on a combination of socially left-wing economics and hard, conservative rhetoric on issues of migration, national identity, and foreign policy. The topic of “peace” and criticism of the West is intertwined in her communication with arguments that have been used by Russian propaganda for a long time – from criticism of sanctions to questioning the support of Ukraine to the image of NATO and the USA as the main culprits of the Russian conflict in Ukraine.
Monika Beňová: the problem is not votes, but “activist” resolutions
Although Monika Beňová is not in the ranking of the most pro-Kremlin MEPs, she spoke critically about the evaluation for Aktuality, against the ranking. He emphasizes that he “does not follow the analyzes of private companies or the media” and has no idea what methodology the authors of the ranking used.
According to her, it is not the score that matters, but the nature of the resolutions themselves. She describes the resolutions on Russian aggression in Ukraine as “unbalanced and politically unrealistic” because, according to her, they reject all proposals related to diplomacy or peace negotiations.
In these resolutions, she sees a “total absence of reflecting on real possibilities” for a long time, and the problem, according to her, is that “we never even attempted diplomatic negotiations to end the conflict.”
Smeru and the Republic did not even condemn the killing of civilians
Slovak MEPs from Smer and the Republic repeatedly emphasize that in the European Parliament they reject sanctions against Russia, military aid to Ukraine and any steps that would “escalate the conflict”. They present themselves as the only ones who “vote for peace”.
However, the latest analysis by EUobserver and Novaya Gazeta Europe shows that the same MPs did not even vote for purely humanitarian resolutions. A concrete example is the resolution on the 2nd anniversary of the Russian invasion. The text, which clearly described Russian crimes, demanded the release of prisoners and condemned the deportation of children, contained no proposals for new sanctions or arms deliveries. It was a symbolic, valuable resolution – but both Smer and Republic MPs rejected it or abstained.
Vice-chairman of the Patriot faction (ESN) and leader of the Republic, Milan Uhrík, explained his procedure to Aktuality with the words:
“I am proud of my votes, I stand by them, and I will continue to vote. I am not voting for Russia or Ukraine. I am voting for Slovakia, for Europe and for peace on our continent.”
He called the resolution on the killing of civilians “biased” and, according to him, “depicting the conflict as a fight between good and evil.” He described Ukraine as a “notoriously corrupt, oligarchic and totalitarian regime that has not even touched the surface of democracy.”
