Fico Casts Doubt on Caputova's Mandate to Represent Slovakia at NATO Summit

Bratislava, July 11 (TASR) - The Smer-SD party on Tuesday questioned President Zuzana Caputova's mandate to represent Slovakia at the NATO summit in Vilnius, maintaining that she didn't consult anyone, including political parties and state institutions. Smer head Robert Fico asked in this regard who can guarantee that the president's votes in Vilnius will translate into specific decisions and resolutions by Parliament and the government. "We [Smer] don't feel at all bound by what the president will do in Vilnius because it is her own subjective decision, which she didn't discuss or consult with anyone," said Fico. Fico also objected to the summit's aim of setting defence spending at a minimum 2 percent of GDP, pointing to other priorities, such as health care. In his view, Ukraine's membership of NATO isn't in Slovakia's national interests. He warned of tensions in the region and of war, reiterating that Ukraine should be a buffer zone between Russia and NATO. Caputova responded by stating that her stance was subject to standard procedure at the government level. She noted that it's identical with the one she's had at every previous NATO summit, including the one in 2019, when Smer was in power. "The positions that I'm going to advocate on Slovakia's behalf weren't only in the making for days or weeks, they were in the making for months under communication with individual ministers from the previous government and, of course, the incumbent government," said the president. zel/df