Slovak Parliament approves Fico government's program to stop military aid to Ukraine

The Slovak parliament has approved the program presented by the government headed by newly appointed Prime Minister Robert Fico. It provides for the termination of military assistance to Ukraine from Slovakia.

This step was one of the election promises of Fico, whose party, among other things, declared that it intends to seek an end to hostilities without questioning Ukraine's internationally recognized borders. The details are reported by Reuters.

The publication writes that on Tuesday, November 21, the Slovak parliament supported the government program presented by Prime Minister Robert Fico. Among its key provisions are the termination of the state's military aid to Ukraine, a gradual reduction in the budget deficit, and the introduction of a new bank tax.

He went into the election, which the socially conservative FDP-FSÖ, led by Fico, won in September on a wave of criticism of the West and liberal policies. Fico's campaign worked, and the majority of voters in Slovakia brought the politician back to power: On October 25, the politician, who was forced to resign as head of government in 2018 due to a major corruption scandal, became the country's prime minister for the fourth time.

Fico's party formed a coalition with two other parties, one of which professes left-wing views and the other nationalist.

The political program of the newly formed government contains a promise to introduce a special tax on bank profits and take measures to reduce interest rates on mortgages. Special fees will also be set for excess profits in other sectors.

"It (the government's plan - Ed.) is aimed at reducing the public administration deficit to 0.5% of GDP in 2024. The country is facing the largest deficit in the eurozone, which is estimated at almost 7% of GDP this year," Reuters writes.

Fico's government has also enshrined in its program its election promise to stop state military aid to Ukraine, which continues to defend itself against Russia's unprovoked full-scale armed aggression. The new government intends to "seek an end to hostilities while recognizing Ukraine's international borders."

In addition, the program sets out a course to oppose the abolition of the national veto of the European Union member states or the transition to majority voting in more regions.

According to Reuters, the parliamentary opposition voted against the government's program. The opposition parties proved their position by Fico's attacks on independent media and the dismissal of high-ranking officials who were investigating the possible involvement of members of the new ruling coalition in bribery.

Earlier, Fico had somewhat softened his campaign promise to withdraw military aid to Ukraine. He said that the Slovak government would not block private arms exports to our country.

Immediately after winning the election, Fico made a scandalous statement, saying that "fascists are fighting in the Ukrainian army."

After the pro-Russian politician's victory in the Slovak elections, OBOZ.UA told what he was "famous for."

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