Slovak prime minister says Ukraine war has ‘no military solution,’ urges dialogue with Russia

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Sunday that the war in Ukraine "has no military solution," calling for dialogue with Russia to end the armed conflict continuing since 2022.

In a press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Bratislava, Fico said Slovakia faces pressure whenever it pursues policies others dislike. "When someone doesn't like this sovereign independent behavior of Slovakia, they are always automatically trying to create obstacles to this sovereign, independent behavior."

He reiterated his position that continued fighting will not resolve the conflict.

"The conflict in Ukraine has no military solution. It has no military solution," he said, warning that if hostilities persist, "the only result will be hundreds of thousands of deaths and a stronger position of Russian Federation."

Fico questioned the effectiveness of sanctions on Moscow, saying the "20th sanctioned packages are getting ready, how many of them do we need so that we could stop the progress of Russian Army?"

He added that European countries should prioritize diplomacy instead. "We should have come up with 20 peace initiatives."

On energy disputes, he said Slovakia lost significant income after gas transit changes and accused Kyiv of politicizing supplies.

"We made 500 million euros per year just on transit fees," he said, adding that "supplies of gas, of oil from Ukrainian side towards Hungary and Slovakia have become an instrument of political, political blackmail and pressure on Slovakia and Hungary."

Fico also voiced criticism of the EU's economic direction, saying: "The EU is economically in a deep crisis," and warned that "if we will not admit that we passed senseless, ideological, climatic goals, we will not get out of this crisis."

Despite his criticism, he said Slovakia supports Ukraine's EU aspirations if conditions are met.

"We say that Ukraine can join the EU under the assumption they will meet all the necessary criteria," he said, adding that Western Balkan candidates were "100 times better prepared for accession than Ukraine."

Calling for engagement with Moscow, Fico stressed the importance of communication even with adversaries. "We have to lead discussion with Russian Federation. We have to lead dialog. We have to have a dialogue with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin," he said.