Criticism of Brussels and Kiev and an invitation to cooperation in Jaslovské Bohunice. Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer) met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in China on Tuesday. It was their third meeting in nine months. Before flying to the celebrations in Beijing, the Prime Minister announced that upon his return, he would hold bilateral talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky - again in Uzhhorod.

Fico met with Putin on Tuesday evening local time and thanked him for the opportunity in front of television cameras."I am glad to see you," he said. The Smer leader first assured him that Slovakia would fulfill all the obligations it had undertaken within the framework of the large joint project in Michalovce. Apparently, he was referring to the restoration of the Central Military Cemetery of the Red Army, for which the government allocated 70,000 euros last year.

He pulled out a frog.

He reminded Putin that Slovakia is a member of NATO and the European Union (EU)."We consider membership in these organizations to be our living space," he noted, describing himself as a politician who does not pull strings under his nose. According to him, he also explained the visit to Beijing to his EU partners and does not understand why only Slovakia is represented in China among the member states.

Putin later responded that Fico can criticize the EU and NATO, but he does not want to put him in an ambiguous situation."I do not want to compare them (Europe and NATO, ed.) to reptiles, animals or authors of fairy tales. They are more like authors of horror stories. And the fact that hysteria is constantly being stirred up now that Russia is allegedly preparing to invade Europe - it is clear to reasonable people that this is a provocation or complete incompetence. Russia has no and has never had any intention of attacking anyone," said the Russian leader, who launched a major invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Although Fico has defined where Slovakia belongs, he has not forgiven Brussels for its criticism. He is disappointed that it cannot react to the movements of the world and does not understand the decisions it makes. He has repeatedly compared the Union to a frog sitting on a well that says that the sky is only as big as the bottom of the well, when in fact it is not.

"We are particularly interested in the standardization of relations between the Slovak Republic and the Russian Federation. I want to propose a meeting of the mixed commission as soon as possible. Let's return to what was typical when it comes to our countries, when it comes to economic cooperation. Let's look for intersections where our countries can successfully cooperate," he told the Kremlin chief.

He wants Russians in Bohunice

Fico claims that he will never support the decision on the so-called Repowering and Bratislava will vote against it. He wants to continue cooperating with Russia in the energy sector, such as gas and oil supplies. He boasted to Putin about his plan to build a new state-owned nuclear power plant. He opened the door to Moscow in this.

"I would welcome Russian-American cooperation in this new project. I would very much welcome it if such an opportunity existed and I will encourage Russian specialized companies to communicate with the American company Westinghouse about such an opportunity," he continued.

According to the RBK portal, Putin stated during the meeting that Russia remains a reliable supplier of energy raw materials to Slovakia. He also emphasized that he values its independent foreign policy.

"We greatly appreciate the independent foreign policy that you and your team, your government, are pursuing. This policy is bringing positive results. First of all, of course, I mean economic indicators. In this context, I want to emphasize that Russia remains a reliable supplier of energy raw materials," he said. Putin also described the operation of Slovak companies on the Russian market as beneficial for the economy of Bratislava.

Between four eyes

Fico did not stop at just one"thank you". Fico expressed gratitude to the Kremlin chief for the safe and regular gas supplies via the TurkStream gas pipeline and criticized Kiev for the attack on the Druzhba oil pipeline."We are reacting very sharply to the attacks on oil infrastructure that took place here," he emphasized. He told Putin that he would meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Uzhhorod on Friday and would"raise this issue very seriously."

He complained to the president several times that he was not carrying any good message."On many topics related to the war in Ukraine, I have diametrically different positions than some EU member states," he emphasized. He asked Putin whether, as Slovak Prime Minister, he should not leave China with a message.

Fico noted that the European community is waiting for a serious decision on Ukraine's accession to the EU, which Slovakia supports."We claim that every country has the right to a European perspective, including Ukraine. At the same time, we very seriously emphasize that Ukraine must meet all the conditions for joining the EU and that political criteria cannot prevail over the criteria of the state's readiness," he noted.

He will also talk to Zelensky about joining the EU. On the other hand, he is happy that his words about Ukraine not being a member of NATO have come true. Late in the evening, he announced that Putin had informed him during a nearly hour-long private discussion about the negotiations with US President Donald Trump in Alaska and the prospects for ending the war in Ukraine.

A turn in foreign policy?

The Smer leader is a long-time critic of Zelensky and Ukraine and has been siding with Moscow since the invasion. He has not met with the Ukrainian president at the highest level since coming to power, and this will be their first official meeting. So far, they have only met at summits; the Smer leader has only held bilateral talks with his counterpart, former Prime Minister Denys Šmyhaľ, in Uzhhorod or Michalovce.

GLOBSEC associate Martin Poliačik, who worked in Ukraine, considers it a shame that the highest constitutional officials have not yet met with Zelensky in either Kiev or Bratislava."The fact that it will not take place as a reception at the highest level in the capital (Slovakia, ed.) is an example that in the relationship with the Russian Federation, the current Slovak representation is much more important than being on the right side of history," he says.

According to diplomat and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Miroslav Wlachovský, the most fundamental area of friction between Fico and Zelensky is in the view of the aggression in Ukraine."While Zelensky knows who the aggressor is and is fighting him, Fico is trying to blame the aggressor and claims that"Russia was provoked" and similar nonsense."For Zelensky and Ukraine, it is an existential struggle and that is how they approach it. Fico pretends as if it does not concern us and that it is only about"safe supplies of Russian raw materials". It is humanly pathetic and it isolates us from other EU countries," Wlachovský told Pravda.

The diplomat considers the timing of the meeting a coincidence."I wouldn't see it as something deeply thought out and structured on both sides. I want to believe that in his approach to our neighbor, the Slovak Prime Minister will look more at the long-term interests of his country than at the interests of Putin. However, I am not sure at this moment and in this area. We will see according to the results. I do not expect a turnaround in Fico's foreign policy. He continues to distance us from the West and our allies in terms of content," he thinks.

Why is Zelensky meeting with Fico?

The leader from Kiev is due to hold a summit in Paris this week, where he will hold talks with European leaders about security guarantees for Ukraine. Then, he will hold talks with Fico. Wlachovský believes that the reasons why the Ukrainian leader will meet with the Slovak Prime Minister right after Paris are very practical."His country is at war and needs any help. The Russians have been devastating Ukraine's energy infrastructure for years. Winter is coming, Ukraine needs energy - gas, electricity," he summed up.

Poliačik believes that Zelensky may have several reasons for the meeting."Slovakia is still the largest supplier of NATO-standard 155-round ammunition to Ukraine, which makes it a very important partner. Regardless of who is the prime minister here and who has what rhetoric, for Ukrainians every single bullet is more important than any press release," he explained.

Another reason, according to Poliačik, may be the fact that Slovakia is still an important and strategic neighbor, both because oil and gas can flow through Slovakia from Ukraine, and also because of projects for deeper interconnection with the rest of the EU."President Zelensky is and has always been a pragmatist. He can also get through Trump's inexcusable statements, and since he managed to do that there, Fico's barking cannot bother him in any way. He always defends Ukraine's interests and will do so at that meeting as well," he believes.

Talk to the Kremlin?

According to Wlachovský, Zelensky also needs Fico's support at the international level, as he wants to join the EU."For this, he needs the support of all EU member states, including Slovakia. Fico is not against EU membership, he is against Ukraine's membership in NATO. Kiev needs support for opening individual negotiation chapters," the diplomat noted.

Poličik believes that Zelensky needs Fico's support especially where the EU should make decisions by consensus, such as on anti-Russian sanctions."Of course, Fico's vote is important there and it is better if he votes with the rest right from the start than if he spends a month or two blackmailing the rest of Europe and then someone pushes him against the wall and he quickly changes his mind," he explained.

Poličik notes that Moscow is also full of pragmatists. An example of this is Putin's trip to Alaska to see Trump, despite the fact that the US is in NATO and is Russia's archenemy."I don't think we are in a situation where people can afford not to meet and talk. The world is burning and we must act in such a way that, despite personal preferences, who we would like to talk to and who we would not like to talk to, we ensure that the interests of the state are protected," he said. According to him, this also applies to Fico's meeting with Putin.

However, he stressed that it is important what we talk about with Russia."It is questionable whether Fico is of any use in negotiating with Russia in a situation where he is only bowing and submitting and is not going there as a representative of Europe, but a servant of the Russian Federation in Europe," he added.

Poliačik says he is currently active in a foundation that works on the return of forcibly displaced Ukrainian children."There, it is completely legitimate when, for example, the Slovak ombudsman communicates with the Russian side about what the return of these children could look like. Of course, we also need to talk to the Russians," he said. Another example, he said, is the negotiation of the exchange of prisoners of war.