Overview
- Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico met President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Saturday during Victory Day events, attended a wreath-laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and skipped the Red Square military parade.
- During the meeting, Putin praised what he called Slovakia’s sovereign foreign policy and said Russia would cover Slovakia’s full energy needs.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, speaking in Stockholm as he marked Europe Day with Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson, called Fico’s Moscow trip regrettable and said it did not reflect other EU leaders’ views.
- Slovakia still buys Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline and gas via TurkStream, and officials argue switching away would be costly because the country’s energy system is built around those routes.
- Fico was the only EU head of government in Moscow for the anniversary, a choice that turned a World War II commemoration into a signal of current alignments that could deepen rifts over sanctions and engagement with Russia.