Fico: Slovakia Insisted on Voluntary Nature of Military Aid Provided to Ukraine

Brussels, March 20 (TASR-correspondent) - The Slovak Republic insisted at the summit in Brussels on Thursday that participation in EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas' plans to provide Ukraine with up to €40 billion in military aid should be voluntary for member states, Slovak Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) posted on a social network on the same day, adding that otherwise, Slovakia wouldn't agree to it. "Nobody can force Slovakia to spend €250 million from its budget to buy weapons for Ukraine at the expense of other domestic priorities," stressed the prime minister. According to Fico, all EU member states share the same view on increasing Europe's security, but there are still differences among them regarding support for Ukraine in the war with Russia. "The incumbent Slovak government has consistently refused to provide free military aid to Ukraine since it was set up, and we also refuse to cover Ukraine's military expenditure," he said, noting that when conclusions on Ukraine at the European Council level are adopted, he has always consistently insisted that they should contain a provision guaranteeing each member state freedom of decision in providing military assistance to Kiev. The prime minister went on to say that such a provision is included in the documents adopted at the European Council on Thursday, namely a declaration by European Council President Antonio Costa, which was joined by all member states except Hungary. According to the premier, this is another important step guaranteeing that Slovakia can behave sovereignly in foreign policy, even in the most sensitive issues. "Of course, we'll take advantage of the voluntary nature of the initiative and won't send a single cent from our budget to Ukraine for their weapons, but we can't prevent other EU member states from helping Ukraine in this way on a bilateral and voluntary basis," he stated. am