Slovak MPs say Poland denied them passage on way to Moscow

BRATISLAVA - A delegation of MPs from the Slovak ruling coalition parties Smer-SD and SNS who were on their way to Moscow were forced to take an alternative route after Poland allegedly denied their plane access.

A delegation led by Slovakian parliamentary vice-presidents Andrej Danko (SNS) and Tibor Gašpar (Smer-SD/NI) left on Sunday for a working visit to Russia at the invitation of the State Duma. The delegation also includes three other MPs from Smer-SD and one from SNS.

In a video released before his departure, Danko said the Polish authorities had refused to allow him to fly over their territory, forcing him to divert the plane via the Czech Republic and Germany.

According to earlier statements by Danko and Gašpar, the Slovak delegation will meet with representatives of the State Duma and several members of the government.

Gašpar noted that the talks would cover a range of issues, including natural gas supplies to Slovakia and the war in Ukraine. He also mentioned that the delegation intends to inquire whether Russia's Gazprom will be able to continue supplying gas to Slovakia despite Ukraine's transit blockade.

Trip to Kyiv and pro-EU protests

Yet another trip to Moscow by members of Slovakia's ruling coalition has drawn criticism from both the public and within their own ranks.

Rebel MPs from the coalition party Hlas-SD (NI) have announced plans to visit Ukraine on Tuesday to "compensate" for the recent Moscow trip by Smer and SNS MPs and the surprise visit by Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD/NI) in December.

On Friday, the group said it would discuss Slovakia's role as a partner for Ukraine in EU accession negotiations, as well as issues related to energy security and Ukraine's post-war reconstruction.

The group will be joined by Beáta Jurík of the pro-EU opposition party Progressive Slovakia (PS/RE)

Four Hlas-SD MPs, led by Samuel Migaľ, began rebelling against certain government and coalition proposals in December. Fico has already warned of the possibility of early elections if the internal conflicts within Hlas-SD and the SNS, which also lost three MPs, remain unresolved.

President Peter Pellegrini has been considering a visit to Ukraine since taking office in April. However, on Saturday he said it was "not an option right now" given the current situation, citing the ongoing dispute with Ukraine over disrupted gas transit.

Slovak citizens have begun protesting against the government's growing alignment with Moscow. The protests, dubbed 'Slovakia is Europe', are now in their third week, with at least 35,000 people taking part in the latest round on Friday in cities across Slovakia.

(Natália Silenská | Euractiv.sk)