PRAGUE (AP) – Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Roberto Fico was shot multiple times and seriously wounded Wednesday after a political incident that shocked the small country and reverberated across Europe.
Doctors are still fighting for their lives hours after the 59-year-old pro-Russian leader was shot in the abdomen, Defense Minister Robert Kalina said outside the hospital where Fico was being treated for his injuries. he told reporters.
He said Fico’s surgery had not yet been completed and that his condition was “very serious”.
The government said at least four shots were fired as Fico met with supporters outside a cultural center in the town of Handlova, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) northeast of the capital.
Interior Minister Matusz Stasi Estok, briefing reporters alongside the Defense Minister, said a suspect was in custody and that initial investigations had found “clear political motives” behind the assassination attempt. .
“There’s no doubt about that,” Kalinak added.
Fico has long been a divisive figure in Slovakia and abroad, but his return to power last year with a pro-Russian and anti-American message has raised concerns in the European Union that he could push his country further away from the Western mainstream. Even greater concerns arose among (EU) member states. .
His government has halted arms deliveries to Ukraine, and critics say he wants Slovakia, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) with a population of 5.4 million people, to abandon its pro-Western policies and to replace populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. I am concerned that we will end up following the same path as Hungary, which is led by the United States.
Thousands of people repeatedly rallied in the capital and across Slovakia to protest Fico’s policies.
According to a message posted on Fico’s Facebook account, he was taken to a hospital in Banská Bystrica, 29 kilometers (18 miles) from Handlova, because it took too long to get to the capital, Bratislava.
The attack comes as political campaigns intensify three weeks before pan-European elections to elect members of the European Parliament. There are growing concerns that populists and nationalists like Fico could benefit in the 27-nation bloc.
“A physical attack on the prime minister is first and foremost an attack on a person, but it is also an attack on democracy,” Fico’s political opponent and outgoing President Zuzana Caputova said in a televised statement. is not accepted. The hateful rhetoric we witness in society leads to hateful actions. Please, let’s stop it. ”
President-elect Peter Pellegrini, an ally of Fico, called the shooting an “unprecedented threat to Slovak democracy.” If we express other political opinions with pistols in squares instead of in voting booths, we will endanger everything we have built together during Slovakia’s 31 years of sovereignty. ”
US President Joe Biden expressed concern. “We condemn this horrific act of violence,” he said in his statement.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg posted on social media platform X that he was “shocked and appalled” by the attempt on Fico’s life, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: called it a “despicable attack”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy condemned the violence against the neighboring country’s government leaders.
“Every effort should be made to ensure that violence does not become the norm in any country, form or territory,” he said.
Slovak parliamentary elections held on September 30th were won by Fico, the prime minister for the third time, and his left-wing party Smer (Direction).
But as the country faced the shock of an attempt on Fico’s life, normal politics were put aside.
The Slovak parliament has been adjourned until further notice. The main opposition parties, Progressive Slovakia and Freedom and Solidarity, have called off planned protests against the government’s controversial plans to overhaul public broadcasting, which would give the government full control of public radio and television. .
Slovakia’s progressive leader Michal Simecka condemned the violence.
“At the same time, we call on all politicians to refrain from expressions and actions that could lead to further escalation of tensions,” Shimecka said.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala wished him a speedy recovery.
“We cannot tolerate violence. There is no place for violence in our society.” The Czech Republic and Slovakia formed Czechoslovakia until 1992.
