Taraba Ready to Submit His Application to SNS on Monday

(JOJ 24,'Politika 24', 15 March) Speaking on JOJ 24's discussion programme 'Politika 24' (Politics 24) on Sunday, Environment Minister Tomas Taraba (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) said that he is ready to apply to join SNS as soon as on Monday (16 March). At the same time, Taraba said he isn't aware of any bid for him to join Smer-SD and denied having discussed it with Premier and Smer-SD leader Robert Fico. Neither Taraba, nor Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova (a SNS nominee) have received an invitation to the SNS working congress that was held on Saturday (14 March). "I am affiliated with SNS. I'm its nominee in the government. The question is whether the Slovak National Party sees room for us to become its members," he noted. Taraba said that he is ready to join SNS. He praised cooperation with Simkovicova in the government, who is politically close to him. On the other hand, he can't envisage cooperating with Sports Minister Rudolf Huliak (Independent). Taraba opines that SNS as a governing party should communicate also other issues, and not only criticise Fico. "I believe that playing the role of the opposition within the coalition is not always an agenda that people are interested in at a time when the government should demonstrate unity," noted the minister. Taraba on the show also commented on Ukraine and the damaged Druzhba pipeline. He doesn't consider Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a credible partner. He also believes that Ukraine under Zelenskyy's leadership doesn't belong to the EU, calling the country a corrupt state. ko