Slovak PM Fico Meets Putin at Russia Victory Day

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico traveled to Moscow on May 8 and 9 as the only sitting European Union leader to attend Russia's Victory Day commemorations marking the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin and called for renewed dialogue between the EU and Russia.

Fico laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin but did not attend the Victory Parade on Red Square, which featured marching units without heavy military hardware. Russian authorities stated the equipment was deployed in Ukraine. During their Kremlin meeting, Putin acknowledged travel challenges for Fico's plane, saying, "I know there were some difficulties with your trip to Moscow. But the important thing is that you're here." Putin added that Russia welcomes resuming bilateral cooperation paused under Slovakia's previous government and pledged, "We will do everything we can to meet the Slovak Republic's energy needs."

Several neighboring countries, including Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, denied airspace access to Fico's government aircraft en route to Moscow, forcing a circuitous path through other nations. Fico later described...