BRATISLAVA (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters gathered in the Slovak capital, holding up banners and chanting slogans on Friday. They accused Prime Minister Robert Fico of steering the country closer to Russia following his recent meeting with President Vladimir Putin. The meeting took place amidst a gas dispute with Ukraine, where Slovakia has been at odds with its neighbor over the decision to cease the transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory starting from January 1. The aim was to disrupt Moscow’s revenue stream.
In an effort to maintain gas transit, Fico met with Putin in Moscow on December 22 after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy refused to extend gas flows. This marked only the third visit by a head of an EU government to Russia since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in 2014.
“We are not Russia, we are Europe,” declared one of the protest organizers to the crowd, who were waving Slovak and EU flags, displaying signs that read “Slovakia stands with Ukraine,” and shouting “Enough of Russia!” and “Shame!”. Organizers estimated that about 15,000 people participated in the demonstration in Bratislava’s central square.
Fico stated that the halt in gas transit through Ukraine would lead to Slovakia losing approximately 1.5 billion euros in transit fees and facing higher gas prices. He even threatened potential retaliatory actions such as cutting humanitarian aid to Kyiv, withdrawing support for Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia, or halting emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine as Russia continues its attacks on the Ukrainian power grid.
Expressing concern over the government’s alignment with Russia, Barbara Fandelova, a 45-year-old marketing professional, voiced, “I am concerned that our government is directing us towards Russia and…is not on the side of citizens.”
Since assuming office in 2023, Fico has shifted Slovakia’s foreign policy by strengthening ties with Russia and refusing to provide military assistance to Ukraine, despite being a member of both the EU and NATO.
Fico announced on Friday that Putin assured that Russia’s Gazprom would find alternative means to supply gas to Slovakia. Approximately 13.5 billion cubic meters of gas passed through Ukraine last year, with approximately 3 billion cubic meters allocated for Slovak consumption.
The EU has maintained that extending the gas transit contract through Ukraine was unnecessary, asserting that countries receiving Russian gas have access to alternative sources. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s foreign ministry attributed the issue to Russia’s stance and the reluctance of “certain politicians” to reduce their reliance on Moscow.
(Reporting by Radovan Stoklasa; Writing by Jason Hovet; Editing by Alison Williams)
