Fico’s precarious balancing act in Slovakia
Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico, is now in a precarious position. He cannot overly offend his country’s partners and Brussels as he depends on European funding. At the same time, he has promised his electorate a hard-line approach to Ukraine and a more confrontational approach to the West. As he floods the media space with misinformation to distract the society, he may find in the end that this balancing act is more difficult to maintain than he realizes.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has had a tough time balancing his efforts to keep his hold on power, all while grappling with contradictions in his policies: sending military assistance to Ukraine, despite campaigning on the promise to “not send another bullet”; travelling to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin; keeping his nationalist coalition allies satisfied; and managing his pro-EU image in Brussels.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has had a tough time balancing his efforts to keep his hold on power, all while grappling with contradictions in his policies: sending military assistance to Ukraine, despite campaigning on the promise to “not send another bullet”; travelling to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin; keeping his nationalist coalition allies satisfied; and managing his pro-EU image in Brussels.
May 5, 2025 -
Jakub Ferenčik
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AnalysisIssue 3 2025Magazine
Robert Fico speaking at the 2025 CPAC Conference in the United States. Similar to his far-right peers, Fico uses disinformation in the rapidly changing media landscape to distract Slovakia’s population from his kleptocratic ambitions and changes to the legal system. Photo: Gage Skidmore (CC) www.flickr.com
Central Europe, illiberalism, politics, Robert Fico, Slovakia, Ukraine
