It doesn’t have to be consulted. Everyone knows exactly what Robert Fico is. Only naïve people thought he had sobered up after his meeting with Trump. I laughed when I read that he is now pro-European. It’s not at all. Robert Fico is still the same minion of Putin.
Now he just wanted to take advantage of the fact that he was with Trump, so he signed up with Macron to present his policy to the four corners of the world. He bowed to Putin, Trump and came to bow to Macron as well. It did not bring anything good to Slovakia. A number of countries have already expressed their views on stopping electricity supplies. For example, I saw the reaction of former Czech Prime Minister Fiala, who clearly said that this is not normal behavior. Fico is embarrassing us all over the world and he is doing it apparently on orders from Moscow.
Ukraine, specifically its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, commented on this by saying that ultimatums should be sent to the Kremlin, and not to Kyiv.
It is abundantly clear that the Russians bombed the energy infrastructure and the Druzhba pipeline; no one questioned it. Even Fico kept quiet about it for three weeks, because he knew very well who did it. However, when a few months ago the Ukrainians hit a part of the country in defense against Russian aggression, he immediately called press conferences and security councils. Now he was waiting for notes from the Kremlin and subsequently declared that it was different and that the Ukrainians were to blame.
Couldn’t it be that he was waiting for the Ukrainians to fix it? The Slovak government now claims that the pipeline has already been repaired and the whole situation is being used as pressure in negotiations with the Hungarian government, with which they have unresolved disputes.
It’s pure nonsense. Fico either violated the law on the protection of classified facts, or he lied. So let him prove that he did not lie, and then let the violation of the law be dealt with. There are only two options. Of course, I don’t believe a word he says. Although I do not have access to classified reports, history shows us that Fico lies all the time. I believe the Ukrainian official version that they are trying to repair the pipeline, but the technicians are constantly threatened by attacks from the Russian Federation.
Viliam Karas from KDH said that Robert Fico actually represents the interests of the Hungarian MOL, because we do not have cheaper gasoline. Is he right? Is Fico fighting for the interests of the Hungarian government?
If Robert Fico was a shareholder of MOL, he would not have behaved differently. He repeatedly lied that Slovnaft could not process other than Russian oil. I remember well that during our government, Slovnaft invested hundreds of millions of euros in technologies for processing other oil. Now suddenly it doesn’t apply? When Russian oil does not flow, they suddenly know how to process other oil and ask the Croats for supplies. Once again, Fico just lies and promotes the interests of Russia and the MOL company instead of the interests of Slovak citizens and the state budget.
What does it say about Slovakia that we have not been able to disconnect from Russian energy in four years? Other countries have done it, why not us?
I am convinced that we are technically ready for it. Investments were made during our government. However, Robert Fico’s political will is lacking. He prefers to promote the interests of Lukoil, Gazprom and MOL. Look at the Czech Republic – they disconnected and have significantly lower energy prices than us. Where is the “cheap” Russian gas and oil? It’s just another lie from Fico.
Isn’t that a shame?
It is both a shame and irresponsibility. Behind it are either the political and economic interests of Fico and the people around him, or direct blackmail from Moscow. I don’t see any other logic in that.
It has been four years of war in Ukraine. What stage do you think this conflict is in? Is the queue stuck, or are you seeing any progress? Does it even have a military solution?
Putin planned that this special operation would end in three days. After four years, the conflict is more or less at a standstill, moving only by minimal territories. The Russians have already lost more than a million soldiers, who have either fallen or have permanent consequences. On the Ukrainian side, there are hundreds of thousands. These are horrendous numbers only because of Putin’s vision of restoring the Soviet Union. The solution is simple – it is enough for the Russians to leave Ukrainian territory, and there will be peace.
But that clearly won’t happen.
It will not happen also because the governments in our country or in Hungary blame the lack of peace on the victim of aggression – Ukraine. It’s sick thinking. As a democratic West, we must unite and help Ukraine, because this war is ruining Russia economically. They lived off the savings from oil and gas sales, but they are running out. Therefore, Putin needs Trojan horses in the EU and NATO, which Slovakia and Hungary are today, to subvert the aid to Ukraine from within.
How much longer will it take? Russia is still building new brigades and sending new soldiers to the front.
Their resources are not infinite. Since the end of last year, they have had higher losses than they manage to recruit new people. They have to be helped by mercenaries from North Korea, Iran or Africa. We have to help Ukraine in defense because Putin started the same war as Hitler once did. If we give in to him now because of politicians like Fico or Orbán, we are in for a world conflict. Ukraine must be helped to defend itself.
However, if no one backs down, we will be watching the war for years to come.
If we had helped Ukraine from the first day as forcefully as we do today, the situation would be different. However, major players, including the US, initially hesitated and wanted to avoid escalation with Russia. It was the West’s fault. Russia does not want peace, it wants war and believes in victory. Such an aggressor must not be yielded to. I don’t know how long it will take. I hope it ends as soon as possible, but I’m not naive.
Russia wants more than they even occupied. If they don’t get what they want, the war continues. What about that?
We must help Ukraine so that it can defend itself. The aggressor must not be rewarded for his actions. We can discuss this for a long time, but the fact remains that Putin has blood on his hands and people like Fico or Orbán are basically running ahead of him.
We watched Roberto Fico’s meeting with Marco Rubio, the US Secretary of State. Some saw it as a welcoming move towards Europe, others as naivety, since Rubio is just the friendlier face of Trump’s policies. Where do you go?
More to the second group. Marco Rubio is a seasoned politician, the child of Cuban immigrants, he has a different mindset than Vice President Vance, but basically he said the same thing diplomatically: either you submit to Trump’s policies and the distribution of spheres of influence, or we will do what we want. He came to Slovakia primarily to lobby for American participation in the completion of the nuclear power plant without competition, which could cost us 40 billion euros. On the way to Hungary, he once again “glued” us to Orbán, which does us no good.
Isn’t Fico right in that we also have to have good relations with this American administration?
Of course it does. But you must know how to defend our interests. It’s not okay when Fico scares people before the election that the defense contract with the US is treason, and then doesn’t even make a peep about it in front of Rubio. They are just lies to the voters. Fico has very bad relations in the EU, no one believes him because they see how he lies and insults. His policy towards the four sides of the world is actually just bowing to Trump and Putin, which harms Slovakia in the long term.
The rule of law, investigations and the road to the referendum
Robert Fico also has a conflict with Maroš Žilinka. He wanted him to change his assessment of the fight against corruption, which Žilinka called catastrophic. How do you perceive it?
For a long time I could not come up with Žilinka’s name because of his senseless actions, such as comments on the defense contract or the spread of Russian propaganda. But at this point, his assessment of reality fits. The abolition of the Special Prosecutor’s Office and the breaking up of NAKA have made the corrupt and tax evaders laugh today. It is a catastrophic reality.
It seems that the result of this conflict was the suspension of criminal prosecutions that also involved you, for example, for donating equipment to Ukraine. What is the status of these proceedings?
Smer accused me of treason and sabotage, which is punishable by tens of years in prison or life imprisonment. The Minister of the Interior, Matúš Šutaj Eštok, established investigation teams that for two years checked my activity and COVID. However, these teams determined that no crime had occurred. The supervising prosecutor agreed. Although Kaliňák appealed, the prosecutor at the regional prosecutor’s office confirmed that the prosecutions were unfounded. These are just more lies of the Direction.
You have stated that if you come back to power, you will set up teams to investigate the current government. Doesn’t that sound like political revenge?
I only said if they would like their own soup. If the police have a free hand, they will certainly investigate the suspicions that appear in the media today – from fire trucks to tenders for ambulances. If they haven’t committed a crime, they have nothing to fear. However, their fear speaks for itself.
The court convicted Juraj Cintula of terrorism, he received a long sentence (editor’s note 21 years). Does it seem reasonable to you?
I am not here to evaluate the court’s decision. We unequivocally condemned the attack on the prime minister as unacceptable. However, in my opinion, it was not terrorism, but attempted murder. The direction is deliberately pushing it to the level of terrorism. Let’s leave it for appeal.
Let’s move on to politics. You mentioned that you are negotiating with other opposition parties about cooperation before the regional and municipal elections. Who have you already agreed with?
We negotiate all over Slovakia. We want to support common candidates so that we do not divide forces, especially in a one-round election. Nothing has been definitively agreed in Bratislava yet, although Mr. Vallo is the best candidate for me. We will support our vice president František Oľha in Prešov and candidate Ľubica Horvátová in Trnava.
Are you also negotiating with the Slovakia movement?
In some regions, yes. We are always looking for a way to connect, although sometimes it is difficult if someone is attacking you.
Progressive Slovakia is considering cooperation with the Hungarian Alliance. What do you think about it?
It is necessary to get as many votes as possible for the anti-coalition bloc. I too have been the target of attacks from the Alliance, but I am looking to the future. I also met Mr. Gubík and the discussion was useful. We will see what steps they take, but I leave the door open to cooperation.
At what stage is the referendum that you initiated?
We have around 360,000 signatures, we are doing the final checks of the sheets and we want to hand them over in the next few weeks. The questions concern the shortening of the election period, the cancellation of the lifetime pension for Fico and the renewal of NAKA and the special prosecutor’s office. I believe that President Pellegrini will keep his word and will not send the obstruction of the referendum to the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic, as he once reproached his predecessor.
Would you like it to be held together with the municipal elections?
It would be ideal because of both cost and participation. I believe that people will come and express their opinion about this government. Every day by which this government would rule shorter is a win for Slovakia.
