Slovakians continue to protest against populist Prime Minister Robert Fico's pro-Russian policy

Bratislava, Slovakia (AP) – On Friday, a large crowd once again took to the streets of Slovakia to express their opposition to populist Prime Minister Robert Fico and his pro-Russian policy.

The wave of recent negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin has fueled talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, an EU leader’s visit to the Kremlin, which has started in more than three years, and he said recently that Slovakia may consider leaving 27-Nation Eu eu and NATO.

“Shame, shame,” chanted the people of Bratislava Liberty Square. Organizers said the crowd gathered in more than 40 towns at home and abroad. Protesters called FICO a “traitor.” They repeated: “Slovakia is Europe.”

FICO survived the assassination attempt in May 2024, facing calls for resignation over comments on future EU and NATO members and claimed Russia had security reasons to invade Ukraine.

The crowd condemned the latest pro-Russian pair of FICO's close accomplices.

These include comments from Erik Kaliαk, who said that if Russian troops conquered Slovakia's neighbor Ukraine, Slovakia “will eventually have a reliable neighbor”.

Kaliňák is the chief adviser to the FICO government, a member of the European Parliament and an agent of the FICO in the left-wing Smer (Direction) party.

ľUbošBlaha, a prominent member of the FICO party, is known for his extreme left-wing rhetoric, and he met one of his trips to Moscow this week at Sergei Naryshkin, head of the Russian SVR spy agency, and said “The West is losing and Russia wins.”

FICO's view of Russia is very different from the mainstream in Europe. He won the parliamentary election in 2023.

He has since ended Slovakia's military aid to Ukraine, criticized EU sanctions on Russia and vowed to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO. He declared Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as his enemy, as Ukraine uses Russian gas supply to Slovakia and some other European customers.