PM Fico to Visit Ukraine, Set to Meet Ukrainian and Polish Prime Ministers (2)

Bratislava, 17 September (TASR) - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) will visit Ukraine, he said in his address during the ceremonial opening of the new academic year in Presov on Thursday, adding that he's due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and new Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi, while Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also stated on Thursday that he would meet Fico in Ukraine on Friday (18 September). The Government Office has clarified that the Slovak prime minister will travel to Ukraine to attend a conference with the prime ministers of other EU countries. During his visit to Presov, Fico expressed concerns about how the conflict in Ukraine evolves. "The situation has never been as serious and tense in terms of the possibility of a pan-European military conflict as it is now," Fico said, adding that he doesn't want Slovakia to become involved in any war. He made the statement in the context of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, according to which an armed attack against one NATO member is considered an attack against all members. "Yes, we're part of NATO, we appreciate that, and we are committed to cooperation and meeting our obligations. But as prime minister, I'll do everything I can to ensure that Slovakia is never drawn into an armed conflict," said Fico, expressing his fears that we are "on the brink", while he cannot imagine what would happen in Slovakia if it faced problems arising from a war. "What is happening in Europe today, what we are hearing and seeing, is that the military conflict in Ukraine has spiralled out of control. All rules governing military operations have been abandoned, and civilian infrastructure is coming under attack. I think we'll witness major military operations on Ukrainian territory. But what I fear most is how strong the military rhetoric in Europe has become. It appears that arms companies will emerge as the winners from the EU's 2028–2034 budget. Not citizens, but arms companies," Fico told the students, adding that he's afraid of war. "I hope that tomorrow night, when I return from Ukraine, I will not be as sceptical as I am now. After last week's meeting with the Visegrad Four (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) prime ministers in Bratislava, I couldn't sleep that night after listening to what the Polish, Hungarian and Czech prime ministers, as well as the Irish prime minister who attended the meeting as the representative of the country holding the EU Council presidency, had said. I didn't feel good about any of it," said Fico. He also told the students that peace should not be taken for granted. "We have it today, but tomorrow there may be nothing. Let's keep our fingers crossed so that things only get better and that the big boys in politics, as I call them, come to their senses, because sometimes I feel like they're losing track of and control over what's currently happening in the world," remarked Fico. NOTE: This story has been updated in the first paragraph and extended to include paragraphs 2 to 5 jrg