The Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, is on an official visit to Romania on Friday, while being involved in a huge scandal in his own country.
In the morning, Fico was received by President Nicușor Dan at the Cotroceni Palace. The two had one-on-one talks and official discussions.
Nicușor Dan addressed military cooperation and the transition to green energy in the discussion with Fico.
"We have an interesting bilateral relationship with growth prospects in mutual benefit, and I am pleased that the military industry is among your concerns. There are bilateral opportunities, especially in this sector, because Romania has a tradition, and here I believe our common interest is to find a way for competitiveness funds to also reach less developed countries. It is also important to find a good balance between green transition and competitiveness, to slow down and make this aspiration of the Union's green transition more economy-friendly," said the head of state.
Later, he was received at the Victoria Palace by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, in a ceremony with military honors and the playing of the national anthems of Slovakia and Romania.
Fico and his Romanian counterpart then had a one-on-one meeting, after which Bolojan stated that the bilateral relationship is solid, supported by economic cooperation, coordination in security matters, and joint projects in infrastructure and energy.
In the afternoon, the Prime Ministers will travel to Oradea, where they will meet with representatives of the Slovak community in Romania.
Fico is accused of treason
Fico's visit to Romania comes as he is involved in a major scandal in Slovakia. The Slovak police have launched an investigation against Prime Minister Fico, said Branislav Groling, the leader of the opposition party "Freedom and Solidarity" (SaS), as reported by iDen.sk.
He stated that the investigation is related to Fico's decision to interrupt the emergency electricity supply to Ukraine. "A month ago, I filed a complaint with the police against Robert Fico, accusing him of treason and other offenses," Groling said.
The complaint was supported by over 13,000 citizens, he added.
The opposition suspects the Prime Minister of abuse of power and treason. "I am convinced that Robert Fico is suspected of committing serious crimes. I highly appreciate that both the prosecution and the police are taking action," added the SaS leader.
In February, Fico announced that his country would interrupt the emergency electricity supply to Ukraine. He cited the interruption of the supply of oil through the Druzhba pipeline as the reason.
Close to Putin
Prime Minister Robert Fico is a close ally of President Vladimir Putin. Returning to power in 2023, Fico adopted a visibly more friendly political line towards Moscow, marking a departure from the traditional positions of the European Union.
Last year, he attended the May 9 parade in Moscow, defying Brussels, which had officially called on EU officials to boycott the event.
An ally of Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, Fico strongly criticized EU policies towards Ukraine and, like Orban, opposed sanctions against Russia and showed interest in developing relations with China.
His positioning increasingly isolates him on the EU stage but places him as a privileged interlocutor in the narrow circle of European leaders who maintain open ties with the Kremlin.