Slovak PM ready to back referendum to lift sanctions on Russia

He said this during the Saturday broadcast on STVR.

Fico compared sanctions against Russia to a "plague," saying they have no impact on Moscow and only harm the European economy.

When asked if he would support a referendum to lift sanctions on Russia, he said he doesn’t need a referendum to decide.

“If such a referendum happens, I will calmly support it. I speak for myself, but I will support it,” he said.

Fico also criticized the discussion of sanctions against Russia at a time when, in his view, “the first signs of negotiations” between Kyiv and Moscow are finally appearing.

“How can we prepare a massive sanctions package against the Russian Federation at a time when peace talks are underway? This only confirms that the talks I hear in the West are completely insincere,” says the Slovak Prime Minister.

• In early May, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini received a petition from the far-right party Slovak Revival Movement (SHO) calling for a referendum to cancel sanctions against Russia.
• The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc is working on an 18th round of sanctions to increase pressure on Putin over the war in Ukraine.