SNS: Ukraine Under Zelenskyy Can Never Be Allowed to Join EU

Bratislava, 2 May (TASR) - The coalition's junior party, Slovak National Party (SNS), has called on Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) not to present Slovakia's support for Ukraine's accession to the European Union as a clear position of the Slovak government at his upcoming meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, TASR was told by SNS spokesperson Zuzana Skopcova on Saturday. "The Slovak National Party is part of the Slovak government and is convinced that Ukraine under President Zelenskyy can never be allowed to join the EU. Ukraine is in conflict and, through its instability, shows it cannot be part of the European Union," the spokesperson said. The party argues that Serbia and Montenegro should join the Union instead. SNS is also convinced that Fico should have blocked a 90-billion-euro loan for Ukraine, as it is clear that a large portion of these financial resources will be lost in a web of economic corruption. "There are no richer people in Monaco today than Ukrainian oligarchs," Skopcova added. SNS believes that concessions to Zelenskyy and Ukraine will cause further destabilisation of the EU. According to the party, the prime minister should take steps to prevent the import of food from Ukraine into Slovakia until its quality is guaranteed. "Ukraine still has a long way to go before it can even become a member state. At present, Ukraine cannot consider joining either NATO or the EU," SNS stated. The party is convinced that Fico is not speaking on behalf of the Slovak government as a whole on this issue. It also rejects the prime minister's messaging on the matter and his support for Ukraine's EU accession. "We hope that Robert Fico will reconsider such statements and realise that if Ukraine joins the European Union, it will only confirm that blackmail and conflicts are a political path," SNS added. It also views the prime minister's remarks as disrespectful to outgoing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who, according to SNS, recently experienced what Ukrainian interest in parliamentary elections looks like. On Saturday, following a phone call with Zelenskyy, the prime minister said that Slovakia supports Ukraine's ambitions to join the EU, as it wishes Ukraine, as its neighbour, to be a stable and democratic country. mf