Monitor: Uhrik: 'Republic' Party in Talks with SNS on Election Cooperation

(JOJ 24,'Politika 24', 22 February) The non-parliamentary party Republic is negotiating close cooperation in the upcoming local election with the coalition's Slovak National Party (SNS), whereas the issue of cooperation in next year's parliamentary election remains open, Republic party chair and MEP Milan Uhrik stated on JOJ 24's discussion programme 'Politika 24' (Politics 24) on Sunday. 'Republic' is not holding any talks with the People's Party Our Slovakia (LSNS). "We would like to achieve some joint approach so that patriotic national votes are not wasted, so that there are as many patriotic mayors and regional governors as possible. This is now our closest priority. Whether any other parties join in is, of course, up to them. We cannot force them, but we will certainly make such an offer," Uhrik said. The MEP also stated that the governing Smer-SD is not a "dream partner" for 'Republic'. He added that the party maintains fair relations with the opposition's Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and other non-parliamentary parties. He indicated that in the event of cooperation with KDH, the party would open cultural and ethical issues and find common ground with the Christian Democrats. He added that 'Republic's' priorities are the state's security forces and healthcare. During the programme, Uhrik also spoke in favour of condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine. At the same time, he added that it had been provoked. "In my opinion, Russia is the aggressor in this war, but I would not say that the war was unprovoked, as is often claimed. The war was provoked precisely by NATO expansion," he said. Uhrik also sees merit in the creation of a new security architecture in Europe, one that would also take into account the interests of Russia and Belarus. "Let me be clear so that there's no misunderstanding: I am not talking about a common army. I am talking about a new security strategy which, in my opinion, Europe needs. Because NATO, as the North Atlantic Alliance, is an outdated concept, a relic of the Cold War, which we see is causing more problems," he said, adding that NATO will have to adapt to geopolitical changes. mf