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Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico visited Moscow on Sunday and met Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said, one of the few meetings the Russian president has had with an EU leader since he ordered an all-out invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago.
The visit, which was not announced in advance but was confirmed on Sunday by the Kremlin when it shared a video of Fico in Moscow shaking Putin's hand, follows a rapprochement between Russian and Western politicians in anticipation of the inauguration of Donald Trump as US president in January.
The issue of energy security was at the forefront of the meeting, with Ukraine pledging to stop the delivery of Russian gas to its territory from the beginning of 2025.
Kyiv's threat represents a major challenge for Slovakia, one of the three EU countries along with Hungary and Austria, which remain heavily dependent on Russian gas from Ukraine.
Trump has claimed that he can find a solution to the conflict and produce a ceasefire in Ukraine “in a day”, raising hopes that he can force Kyiv to accept a peace deal that is very beneficial to Moscow.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke with Putin by phone last month for the first time in two years, as European leaders prepare for what the start of Trump's second term could bring and hold talks on ways to maintain support for Ukraine.
Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico arrived at the Kremlin. Earlier, the head of the Slovak government planned to discuss with the Russian president the issue of gas transportation through Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/GMKECGSINf
-OSINTWarfare (@OSINTWarfare) December 22, 2024
Fico's visit was planned a few days ago, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a Russian TV reporter on Sunday. He added that Putin and Fico were meeting “someone else” and that they could discuss current affairs and the flow of Russian gas through Ukraine.
Fico, who is it? he survived the assassination attempt at the beginning of this year, he accepted a position more friendly to Moscow than other heads of EU States.
The Slovak prime minister opposed the acceptance of western sanctions against Russia for invading Ukraine. His position is similar to that of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in the neighboring country of Hungary, who also visited Moscow in July of this year, causing an outcry from his colleagues throughout Europe.
Sunday's visit marks the first in-person meeting between Putin and Fico in eight years, Tass news agency reported.