Czechia's President Petr Pavel addresses the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023, at U.N. headquarters. (source: TASR/AP)
Smer leader Robert Fico has accused Czech President Petr Pavel of meddling in the Slovak election campaign.
The Czech president told the press last week that Slovakia’s former three-time premier holds opinions that correspond more to Russian propaganda than to the vision of the West.
“This would certainly, in the case of his election, disrupt the relations between us to a certain extent, because we would look at some fundamental things differently,” Pavel said.
Fico, who served as prime minister from 2006 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2018, described Pavel’s statement as “bizarre” and “icy”. Simultaneously, he admitted that he holds different opinions than the Czech president, say, when it comes to the military support of Ukraine.
“I will not create reasons for conflicts, therefore I will consider your interference in the Slovak election campaign due to another legitimate opinion as just a misunderstanding,” Fico said in a video on September 24.
The Slovak politician also thanked former Czech presidents Václav Klaus and Miloš Zeman for their support.
“Dear Robo”
In a recent video, Zeman, who holds pro-Russian and pro-Chinese views, wished all the best to Fico and his party. He addressed him as “dear Robo”.
“I wish for social democracy to win in Slovakia and I wish you and your colleagues full success,” he said.
Klaus wrote in a letter to Fico on September 13 about his outrage over “brutal attacks” on Fico and Smer. In recent years, Klaus has been notorious for his pro-Russian views. Klaus is the man who helped ex-Slovak premier Vladimír Mečiar split Czechoslovakia in the early nineties. In the letter, Klaus continued, “We agree with you that it is necessary to rely on the citizens of Slovakia, on the Slovak voter, and not on comments in the New York Times or in other foreign media, including Czech ones.”
Fico, however, is not the only politician blaming foreign politicians for interference in the election.
Hungary's MFA Péter Szijjártó and Aliancia leader Krisztián Forró visited eastern Slovakia on September 26, 2023. (source: Facebook/Forró Krisztián)
Hungarian minister at campaign events
On September 25, former defence minister Jaroslav Naď (Demokrati) criticised Hungarian MFA Péter Szijjártó for attending political events organised by the Hungarian minority party Aliancia just days before the Saturday election.
“This is an obvious interest in interfering with the pre-election campaign in our country,” Naď said.
In August, Szijjártó criticised the arrest of former police chief Tibor Gašpar, who is now running in the election on the slate of the Smer party. He said that Gašpar was a victim of the “liberal mainstream”.
Today, acting Prime Minister Ľudovít Ódor responded to Szijjártó’s presence in Slovakia by saying that Slovak diplomacy was informed of his visit.
“The [Slovak foreign] minister has assured me that they have made it quite clear to the other party when they are coming to Slovakia, and we believe that they will respect that and not enter the ongoing election campaign.”
