Slovakian leader meets with Putin in Moscow

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico met Russian President Vladimir Putin in a previously unannounced visit to the Kremlin on Sunday for talks, Russian state media reported.

It was the first visit by an official representative from Slovakia to Russia since Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Trips to Moscow by leaders of any EU country have become increasingly rare.

Fico may have wanted to talk to Putin about natural gas supplies, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. Little else has been offered about the subject of the talks.

Fico, often slammed by his opponents as "pro-Russian," also plans to travel to Moscow in May 2025, having accepted an invitation to the World War II commemorations on May 9, the Slovakian government said in November.

The Slovakian leader has frequently criticized EU and NATO policy on Ukraine.

Slovakia, a member of both the EU and NATO, shares a border with Ukraine. And Slovakia, unlike Hungary, has so far supported all of the EU's aid packages for Ukraine, and all sanctions on Russia.

But left-wing populist Fico often publicly criticizes Western policy on Ukraine. He has repeatedly called on the EU to mediate a peace settlement instead of "prolonging the killing and destruction in Ukraine" by supplying weapons.

In relation to its population size, Slovakia was one of Ukraine's most committed military supporters when the Kremlin launched its invasion.

When he returned to power in October 2023, Fico ended direct arms deliveries from army stocks. However, the Slovak arms industry continues to produce military goods for Ukraine on a commercial basis.