Prime Minister Robert Fico is satisfied with the conclusion of the extraordinary summit, but according to the opposition, he failed in the negotiations.
The requirement to seek solutions to resume gas transit through Ukraine was Fico’s condition for supporting the conclusions.
“The European Council has acknowledged the legitimacy and validity of our comments and concerns, which we have been constantly expressing, because we know what it will cause if this gas does not pass through Slovakia and on to Europe."
According to political science expert Radoslav Štefančík from University of economics in Bratislava, it is important that the Prime Minister has agreed to what the majority of the Member States of the European Union have agreed to. "Róbert Fico's long-term behaviour is really that on the one hand he says something to his voters and on the other hand he behaves quite responsibly in the EU institutions," claims Štefančík.
The Prime Minister hasn’t won anything particular in favour of Slovakia, stated leader of the opposition party Progresívne Slovensko Michal Simecka: "The reason why Robert Fico finally supported all those conclusions about how it is necessary to continue to strongly support Ukraine, politically, humanitarian, militarily, economically, he basically denied everything he says at home, but what is essential for Slovakia is that he has achieved nothing, just one empty, contentless sentence about gas."
Opposition SaS MP Vladimíra Marcinková agrees: "He pretends to negotiate the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, and in the end all it will negotiate is to remain obedient to Ukraine and not disturb the real leaders in their efforts to defend Europe."
Michal Bartek from coalition Hlas-SD finds Fico’s stance to gas is sufficient: "Some leaders didn't even want to hear about it,“ he claimed adding that the conclusions cannot be doubted.
Robert Fico has the confidence of another coalition partner, SNS party. However, its leader Andrej Danko expected Slovakia to behave like Hungary, which did not vote for further aid to Ukraine. "Either it should have been there that there will be transit, but it is a success, what Róbert Fico has achieved, it should be appreciated that he has opened this topic, I am not satisfied with the wording because it does not solve anything."
The Prime Minister rejects the criticism and reminds that further aid to Ukraine will be only on a voluntary basis, with which he has no fundamental problem. He reiterated that Slovakia would not send any funds or military material to its eastern neighbour.
Source: Slovenský rozhlas
