The prospect of a Trump-Putin summit in Alaska has prompted a wide range of reactions within the Slovak political landscape. Both the coalition and the president view the meeting as a significant step towards lasting peace in Ukraine. However, the opposition PS argues that no tangible progress has been made towards ending Russian aggression.
I view the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin as a significant international step on the path to seeking lasting and sustainable peace in Ukraine, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini said on Saturday in reaction to Friday's summit in Alaska. "Although it failed to bring concrete results, I find it most important that it took place and opened the door to further negotiations, including with the direct participation of Ukraine,“ he added.
The meeting officially launched the standardisation of relations between the United States and the Russian Federation, Slovak Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) posted on a social network on Saturday. "The presidents have launched a vital process in Alaska. It is a process that is also a major trap for the European Union. The upcoming days will show whether the major players in the Union will support this process and lead the Ukrainian conflict to a fast end, or the unsuccessful European strategy of trying to weaken Russia through this conflict with all kinds of financial, political or military aid will continue," stated Fico.
Every step towards a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine is important, House Chair Richard Raši (Voice-SD) stated in response to the summit in Alaska, adding it was positive that US President Donald Trump informed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the European allies about the course of the summit.
Speaking on public STVR's major politics radio programme, Foreign Affairs Minister Juraj Blanár (Smer-SD) called the Alaska summit the first step towards peace, stressing the need for dialogue. However, anyone who thought the summit would end the conflict was naive, he said.
Ivan Korčok, former Foreign Minister and member of the opposition PS party Presidium, believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to continue the war and fundamentally change the security order in Europe. He pointed out that the outcomes of the Alaska summit were not concrete enough to bring about an early end to Russian aggression.
MP Veronika Remišová (Slovakia, Za ľudí, KÚ) claimed that at the summit, US President Donald Trump had only given "many compliments to war criminal Putin". She also pointed out that the US President's words set a dangerous precedent.
Source: TASR, STVR
