According to Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák (Smer-SD), Slovakia should return three million euros from the money it already received from the European Peace Instrument for military equipment donated to Ukraine from the time of the former governments. The reason is supposed to be that Slovakia has already received more money than it actually had.
The reimbursed part of the value of the donated equipment decreased over the years. Non-affiliated opposition MP Jana Bittó Cigániková pointed out that the current government does not have good relations with European institutions, and thus cannot make any pronouncements. Politicians announced this in the TA3 TV discussion show V politike.
Kaliňák responded that the reduction in the volume of financial tranches also affects other states. “It is not only us, but also other countries, such as Poland and many others that have billions in it, so it’s not about bad or good Fico, as you would like to suggest, it is not true at all, of course,” he declared. He thinks that all countries will be unhappy with this, but the European Commission has already used the money.
Bittó Cigániková described it as an example of damaging politics to the four world parties. “In part, it may be successful at home in the elections, but as a result, it causes that then – even if we have objectively correct arguments, we were one of the first and we helped one of the most – the diplomatic power, thanks to what our government is doing, is not enough to prevent our citizens from losing money,” he claims.
Kaliňák also pointed out that the KUB anti-aircraft systems, which the Ministry of Defense sold to a private company, were not functional. He argued that no one in Slovakia had even applied for an export license for such a weapon system. According to Bittó Cigániková, she has no doubts that the military equipment was unnecessary, but she is interested in whether Slovakia did not lose money by selling it.
