We hope for a good outcome of the early elections for Slovakia and Europe
24.08.2023
Oleksandr Duleba
Early parliamentary elections will be held in Slovakia soon. In view of the inability of the government of Eduard Heger to manage the country, President Zuzanna Chaputova announced a decision to address the citizens of Slovakia regarding the future of the country. Oleksandr Duleba, a senior researcher at the Slovak Association of Foreign Affairs in Bratislava, has shared his opinion on the events of September with the Newssky, as Slovakia is a country of paradoxes and sometimes unpredictable.
Given the results of the poll, it can be predicted that Robert Fico, the Slovak version of Orbán, will win the first place. He had already been prime minister for 12 years and his rule was affected by the murder of the journalist Kuciak. In 2020, a change of government took place due to the protest of Slovaks, criminal cases were opened against Fico’s closest circle, and he was saved only because the parliament did not give consent to his arrest.
It is important for him to win in a way where he can take control of everything possible – like Putin in Russia, Orbán in Hungary, to be able to destroy all the cases that have been brought. This is a big risk and challenge for Slovakia. Will Fico be able to form a government? This is a difficult task for him. Even if the Slovak fascists – Republika— will join, it will not be enough to form a government. If Andriy Danko (parliamentarian from 2016 to 2020, a nationalist, was the chairman of the national assembly in 2016 – ed.) gets into the parliament, he may succeed, but fortunately, there are many parties in Slovakia, and no one has a monopoly on power at the moment.
I hope that the election results will not allow Robert Fico to create a government. The key position now belongs to Peter Pellegrini (Strana-hlas). He moved away from Fico, his party prefers to distance itself from Fico’s criminal reputation, and his abuse of power. Pellegrini can be called a washed-up Fico. Today, the party ranks 3rd after Progressive Slovakia. But the «golden share» is still precisely in Pellegrini. Fortunately, he will not establish an Orbán-style government. Before Ukraine’s war with Russia, Fico, Pellegrini, and Danko criticized the Matovich government because of the treaty with NATO, but already on the eve of the war, in December, they began to say that NATO is a key ally, and Pellegrini not so long ago emphasized that Slovakia is with NATO and with the EU without a doubt. That is, we see the positive development in his mindset.
Therefore, we hope that the new government will include Strana-hlas, Progressive Slovakia, and probably the Christian Party or Demokrati, and as a result, a very good government can be created for Slovakia and for Europe, and in particular for relations between Ukraine and Slovakia. Pellegrini does not want to be in the government with Fico, because he understands that he will be absorbed. Although, Fico makes attempts to threaten Pellegrini with compromising materials.
Maryna Kovalchuk, Newssky’s own correspondent (Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland), head of the V5 Media project, and deputy editor-in-chief, contributed.
