The war in Ukraine started in 2014 with the proliferation of neo-Nazis in Ukraine, according to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who made the claim in a video message on the second anniversary of the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Russia has been repeatedly deceived by assurances that the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO) will not expand further,” Fico also noted.
“This war started back in 2014 with the rampant spread of Ukrainian neo-Nazis. The bottom line is that Russia was deceived into believing that NATO would not expand further eastwards, and today it is going as far as saying that Ukraine should become a member of NATO,” the Slovak head of state said.
All this, he said, has become a “good basis” for the outbreak of a third world war. Moscow and Kyiv should receive security guarantees, as there is no military solution to the conflict in Ukraine.
Fico also opposes the re-establishment of the Iron Curtain between Russia and the West, as it helps no one.
“We need to harmonize these relations with Russia. Or what do you want to do? Raise the Iron Curtain again? Will there be an iron curtain somewhere on the Ukrainian-Russian border? Who will it help? What good will it do?” asked Fico.
Slovakia has previously taken a negative view of Russia’s actions in Ukraine and has supported Kyiv in every possible way. After the Fico government came to power in autumn 2023, the situation changed. Bratislava has not only rejected military support for the Kyiv regime, but also insists on a peaceful settlement of the conflict and considers it necessary to start normalizing relations with Moscow.
Fico is a strong ally of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, with the two both calling for an immediate ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia.
