Published 23:22 IST, December 22nd 2024
Putin Holds Talks with Slovak PM Fico in Rare EU Leader Visit to Moscow
Russian President Putin held talks with Slovakia's PM Robert Fico in a rare EU leader visit to Moscow since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
- World News
- 1 min read
Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in the Kremlin on Sunday with Slovakia's prime minister, Robert Fico, in a rare visit to Moscow by an EU leader since Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Fico arrived in Russia on a “working visit” and met with Putin one-on-one on Sunday evening, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia's RIA agency. According to Peskov, the talks would focus on “the international situation” and Russian natural gas deliveries.
Visits and phone calls from European leaders to Putin have been rare since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine, although Hungary's PM Viktor Orban visited Russia in July. Orban's visit drew condemnation from Kyiv and European leaders.
Fico’s views on Russia’s war on Ukraine differ sharply from most European leaders. The Slovakian PM returned to power last year after his leftist party Smer (Direction) won parliamentary elections on a pro-Russia and anti-American platform. Since then, he has ended his country’s military aid for Ukraine, hit out at EU sanctions on Russia, and vowed to block Ukraine from joining NATO.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Republic and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Updated 23:22 IST, December 22nd 2024