Robert Fico meets with the Russian president amid concerns about his country's gas supplies, and at a time when Slovakia is withdrawing support for Ukraine's war effort.

"In a long conversation ... Putin and I exchanged views on the military situation in Ukraine, the possibilities of an early peaceful end to the war, and on mutual relations between the Slovak Republic and the Russian Federation,

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in his evening address on Monday, 23 December, has once again criticised Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who on 22 December held talks with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin regarding gas supplies.

Fico’s views on Russia’s war on Ukraine differ sharply from most other European leaders. Slovakia's prime minister returned to power last year after his leftist party won parliamentary elections on a pro-Russia and anti-American platform.

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico met one-on-one with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Sunday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Monday blasted Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico over his reluctance to end his country's dependency on Russian gas, calling it a "big security issue" for Europe and saying Fico declined compensation.

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 the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in 2022.

Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico arrived in Russia on a “working visit” and met with Putin one-on-one on Sunday evening.

All technology stocks yesterday in the US led the reduced trading for Christmas Eve. In Europe the few open stock exchanges closed positive after a few trading sessions. The main theme is the auto sec

The situation with European countries that buy Russian gas is very complicated and requires increased attention, the Kremlin said on Monday after talks the previous day between President Vladimir Putin and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.

Slovakia's Prime Minister visits Moscow to ensure gas supply as the Ukraine-Russia gas transit deal nears expiration, defying the EU and highlighting the country's energy dependence on Russia.