MEP Delegation Uneasy about Kalinak's Alleged Involvement in Scandals

Bratislava, September 18 (TASR) - A delegation of MEPs visiting Slovakia on Tuesday expressed concerns about the fact that former interior minister Robert Kalinak (Smer-SD) has been linked by some media and the parliamentary Opposition to the abduction of a former Vietnamese state businessman from Germany via Slovakia and pro-Vladimir Putin biker group Night Wolves, which has set up a local base in Slovakia. The group of MEPs came to Slovakia to review the progress made in the investigation of the murders of journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancée in February. Delegation head Sophie in 't Veld also told a news conference on Tuesday that the EP group was uneasy about the fact that many Slovak officials who were forced to resign by public pressure eventually received new important posts. For example, national police chief Tibor Gaspar, who resigned after protests in the wake of Kuciak's murder, has become an advisor for Interior Minister Denisa Sakova (Smer-SD). According to the delegation, new Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD), who replaced Robert Fico in the spring, and his Government seem to be determined to make changes in the country, but they appear not to be able to make a thick line behind the past. The MEPs stressed that it's "absolutely necessary " to see the murders investigated. "I feel a strong determination to lead the investigation of the murder to a rapid and good end," said Veld. At the same time she praised Slovakia's democracy and rule of law as "very resilient", as indicated by efforts of some figures in the state administration to make it more transparent. bub