Monitor: President Expects Slovakia to Support Sanctions, After Deal with EU

(TA3, 'V politike', 29 June) President Peter Pellegrini considers the conditions set by Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) for Slovakia's potential support of the European Union's 18th sanctions package against Russia to be legitimate. Pellegrini believes the European Commission will be compelled to pay more attention to Slovakia, but expects the situation to get resolved - ultimately leading to the approval of the sanctions package. Pellegrini made the comments during TA3's political talk show 'In Politics' (V politike) on Sunday. „The Prime Minister has laid out his conditions fairly. He has no problem supporting the 18th package of sanctions, provided Slovakia receives guarantees regarding its energy security and gas prices," Pellegrini stated. He suggested that Fico is leveraging the negotiations to secure benefits for Slovakia. „In this situation, I wouldn’t criticize him," he added, noting that Slovakia has never blocked any previous EU sanctions packages. The President also discussed the outcome of the recent NATO summit in The Hague. He highlighted that member countries have agreed to increase their defense spending to five percent of GDP by 2035, extending the previous timeline from five to ten years. He pointed out that this adjustment reflects global arms industry capacity. Pellegrini expressed hope that world leaders will focus on achieving peace in Ukraine and other conflict zones. „So that peace does not have to be enforced through increased military activity," he said. Addressing Prime Minister Fico’s earlier remarks about neutrality, Pellegrini said those comments only resonated at the time they were made. He noted that no NATO leaders brought up the issue during the summit. „Slovakia sat at the table as a full NATO member," he declared. However, he acknowledged that such statements could make investors view Slovakia with skepticism and urged caution when discussing such sensitive topics. „This is not an issue today. Slovakia is a full member of both the EU and NATO, and I firmly believe that won’t change anytime soon," he added. Regarding relations with Ukraine, Pellegrini confirmed plans to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, though he emphasized the meeting should have substance - not just symbolic value. He expressed a desire for the visit to send a positive signal to both sides and possibly lead to progress on unresolved issues. Pellegrini stated that maintaining good relations with neighboring countries is part of his presidential role. He described current relations between Fico and Zelenskyy as tense - attributing the strain to Ukraine’s decision to end natural gas transit through its territory. mf