Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico rebuked European Union leaders, including new foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Council President António Costa, for declaring support for Ukraine on behalf of the bloc.
Fico asserted that such statements were made without consensus from EU member states.
“Neither members of the Commission nor the president of the European Council can permit themselves to make statements, in the name of the European Union, on which the European Union and the European Council have never agreed,” Fico told reporters. “They made statements that did not correspond to the conclusions of the European Union.”
Fico relayed his concerns during a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, accusing the leaders of overstepping their mandate. The remarks in question were made during a recent visit to Kyiv by Kallas, Costa, and EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, during which they affirmed EU support for Ukraine.
This criticism marks the latest in a series of clashes between Fico and Kallas. On November 30, Fico accused the former Estonian prime minister of being overtly aligned with the United States and of harboring “open hatred of the Russian Federation” in a video shared on social media.
Adding to the controversy, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from Fico’s ruling Smer (Direction) party recently voted against the new European Commission. During his call with von der Leyen, Fico also reiterated his differing stance on military aid to Ukraine. Since taking office last year, he has halted Slovakia’s delivery of weapons to Ukraine, maintaining that his government will not waver from this position.
