MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Friday, 6 February 2026 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Thursday, 5 February): BRATISLAVA - MPs have prematurely ended the debate on opposition motions to dismiss several ministers and on the vote of no-confidence in the government, following a proposal to this effect by House Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD), TASR reported on Thursday. More than 50 speakers were scheduled to participate in the debate of the total of 67 MPs registered in writing. The debate began shortly before 10 p.m. on Wednesday (4 February) and was originally set to continue without breaks until fully concluded. During the night, the debate was dominated by opposition MPs, who conveyed their objections to the government and individual cabinet members, arguing that the government doesn't serve the public. "Seventy percent of people in Slovakia want this government to resign because it is in fact working only for itself," said MP and leader of the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party Michal Simecka, adding that the government works for its own benefit, benefits for its cronies and oligarchs and towards gaining impunity. BRATISLAVA - The law-enforcement authorities have halted criminal proceedings in three out of four cases in connection with aid provided to Ukraine under the previous government, with these involving the donation of MiG-29 fighter jets and the S-300 air defence system, as well as the termination of a contract with a Russian company providing maintenance for the fighters, Bratislava Regional Prosecutor Rastislav Remeta told a press conference on Thursday. Remeta added that an investigation into the handover of technical documentation to Ukraine's military attache is still ongoing. Regarding the termination of the contract with the Russian company, Remeta said that a senior official at one of the Defence Ministry's departments did not act in an arbitrary manner when terminating the contract because he followed the instructions and acted on the basis of the defence minister's decision. He added that the successor company of the firm that originally signed the contract accepted the decision without a challenge. According to Remeta, the donation of MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine in 2023 under the then caretaker government was in line with the law and the efficient management of state property, as maintaining fighters that weren't even capable of adequately protecting Slovakia's airspace would have cost tens of millions of euros a year. The investigation has revealed that cabinet members did not act with the aim of obtaining unlawful benefits, nor did they exercise or exceed their powers contrary to the law, said Remeta. BRATISLAVA - Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) has said that the prosecution service has joined the political struggle side by side with the opposition, claiming that the head of the Regional Prosecutor's Office is trying to show the opposition that he's a suitable candidate to become the next prosecutor-general. Fico stated this in a video posted on social media in response to information presented on Thursday by Bratislava Region Prosecutor Rastislav Remeta on investigations into aid to Ukraine. In the video, the prime minister also linked Remeta's press conference to Wednesday's (4 February) press conference by Prosecutor-General Maros Zilinka. BRATISLAVA - Neither the European Commission (EC) nor the European Council are listening to concerns about the huge differences in electricity prices across Europe, even though several EU countries, including Slovakia, have drawn attention to this problem and proposed various solutions, stated Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) in Parliament during the regular question time on Thursday. During the session, he also responded to a question from coalition MP Ivan Hazucha (Smer-SD): "Dear Prime Minister, what are your expectations from the informal European Council summit, which will focus on the competitiveness of the EU?" Fico said that he'd spoken on the phone with European Council President Antonio Costa in connection with preparations for next week's summit, pointing out, however, that this is an informal summit that won't produce any conclusions and that he's "very sceptical" about it. "Neither the European Commission, nor the entire European Council listen when it comes to the huge differences in electricity prices across Europe. We ask why, when we are a country that basically doesn't produce any emissions when producing electricity - because the vast majority of electricity, if we take into account power utility Slovenske elektrarne, is produced at nuclear and hydro power plants - we have to pay around €100 per megawatt on the exchange in Leipzig, while other exchanges in other parts of Europe set completely different prices?" asked the premier. BRATISLAVA - MPs rejected the opposition's proposal to express no confidence in the government in a vote held on Thursday afternoon. Of the 139 MPs present, 60 voted in favour of the motion, 79 against, and none abstained. In addition to coalition MPs, the proposal was also opposed by independent MPs supporting the coalition, including Pavel Luptak, Roman Malatinec, Ivan Sevcik, Miroslav Radacovsky and Jan Ferencak. The opposition submitted a motion of no confidence in the government cabinet back in January last year. The opposition parties claimed that the government had betrayed its promise to carry out its obligations in the interests of Slovak citizens, criticising government representatives for the consequences of public finance consolidation and Slovakia's shift in foreign policy toward the East. BRATISLAVA - Former House vice-chair Peter Pcolinsky heads a new political party called Brothers of Slovakia, according to his social media post. "On 31 January, at the congress of the party Heart, Patriots and Pensioners, delegates unanimously elected me as their party chairman. After the change of leadership, we also proceeded with changes to the statutes and a change of the party name to Brothers of Slovakia," Pcolinsky confirmed to TASR. He admitted that he'd drawn his inspiration from the party of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni – Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy) – and its focus. "It clearly promotes value-based politics built on national pride, stability and the protection of the family," he underlined. ko