A delegation of the Slovak parliament, headed by the deputy speaker of the chamber, Andrej Danko, flew to Moscow, the Russian state agency TASS reported on Sunday. The authorities in Bratislava are looking for support from the Kremlin after Ukraine suspended the transit of Russian gas.
The TASS agency reported on Sunday around 15 (1 p.m. in Poland), that the plane with Slovak parliamentarians on board landed at Vnukovo airport in Moscow.
TASS reported that two deputy speakers of the Slovak parliament, Andrej Danko (leader of the Slovak National Party, SNS, which forms the government coalition) and Tibor Gaszpar (from Prime Minister Robert Fico Smer's party), intend to meet on Monday with the speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, and on Tuesday – with the head of the Russian Federation Council (upper house), Valentina Matviyenko.
Following Fico
The six-member delegation is to stay in Moscow until January 15. TASS reported that Slovak parliamentarians plan to discuss in the Russian capital “the issues of continuing Russian gas supplies to Slovakia and the prospects for a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.” Danko also said, quoted by the Slovak agency TASR, that “he would like to see what it is like in Russia, where there are Western investments.” – I would like to show that people live there too Germany“The French and Americans do business there,” he argued.
Andrej Danko (left) before departure to Moscow facebook.com/andrejdanko.sk
Danko also claimed that Poland did not consent to the flight of the Slovak plane. – I do not understand Poland's position, but I accept it as reality – said the politician before flying to Russia.
The Deputy Prime Minister and the head of the Ministry of National Defense were asked about this issue Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz he replied that “when it comes to the direction of flights, he recommends flights to Warsaw, not to Moscow.”
Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz: I recommend flights to Warsaw TVN24
Before leaving for Moscow, Danko said that he treated his visit to Russia as a “continuation of the dialogue initiated by Prime Minister Fico.” The head of the Slovak government visited Russia at the end of December last year. He met with the president Vladimir Putin. After this meeting, Fico claimed that the talks concerned gas supplies and the situation in… Ukraine.
Both Fico and parliamentarians are looking for support from the Kremlin in connection with this Ukraine's decision to suspend the transit of Russian gas through its territoryadopted on January 1 this year.
Slovakia was one of the EU countries dependent on Russian supplies via Ukrainian territory.
The Slovak opposition openly criticized Fico's trip to Moscow. His visit and meeting with Putin also sparked a wave of demonstrations. Last Friday, at least 15,000 people protested in Bratislava. Demonstrations also took place in other cities. Further protests are planned for January 24.
Danko is one of the most pro-Russian politicians of the current government coalition. In 2024, in one of the interviews, he stated that Russia is not an aggressor and is only defending its interests in Ukraine. He also distanced himself from the policy of sanctions and did not condemn Russia's occupation of Crimea in 2014.
Main photo source: facebook.com/andrejdanko.sk