PS Calls on ZSR Head to Dismiss Grof for His Ties to Russian Radicals (2)

Bratislava, 13 July (TASR) - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party has called on director of state-owned railway infrastructure operator ZSR Miroslav Garaj to immediately dismiss ZSR security and crisis manager Jan Grof for meeting Russian radicals in St. Petersburg and for participating in the Neva Forum, a propaganda conference, alongside several individuals on sanctions lists. PS security expert Peter Bator reported on Monday that the party is also calling on the ZSR head to conduct a security audit within the company. The audit should determine what information Grof has had access to, what information he's handled, and what information and systems he may have shared with the individuals that he met in Russia. "We're also calling on Transport Minister [Jozef] Raz [a Smer-SD nominee] - who has nothing to do with this - to oversee the entire process. And we're calling on the National Security Authority (NBU) to determine whether Grof holds security clearance," said Bator, adding that if he does hold security clearance, the agency should immediately open an investigation and begin verifying all the facts at its disposal. "Based solely on what we've discovered, I know that all the issues that we've listed could pose a huge problem and lead to you losing your clearance very quickly," he added. Parliamentary vice-chair and member of the committee overseeing SIS operations Martin Dubeci (PS) announced that as early as Monday a so-called unscheduled inspection of the Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) will be requested. "The goal will be to find out what measures SIS will take in this matter, and how it assesses the overall risk of a security breach, whether this is to infrastructure or our civil service," said Dubeci, adding that if it is felt that the information provided is insufficient or requires a meeting of the entire committee, such a meeting will be requested without delay. Bator explained that the Neva Forum is a regular conference focused on more effective governance in Russia. Several individuals on sanctions lists participate in it, including representatives of Myanmar's military junta. "This forum serves to spread propaganda narratives and uses foreign guests specifically for that purpose," noted Bator, adding that the event is organised by Campus Ranepa of the Presidential Academy, which he described as "the main breeding ground for Putin regime staff". This organisation has also been on sanctions lists since 2025. ZSR has responded by telling TASR that the company's general director will ask the National Security Authority to re-screen Grof. "To rule out any doubts regarding his ability to serve as director of the security and crisis management department, a higher level of security clearance than he has had to date will be required," said ZSR spokesperson Petra Lanikova. ZSR still doesn't consider Grof's private visit to St. Petersburg to be a threat to the security of railway infrastructure or of Slovakia. "As we stated last week, should the state's intelligence or security agencies investigate this matter, the ZSR management will cooperate fully," added Lanikova. NOTE: This story has been extended to include the final two paragraphs. am/df