The new Slovak government rejected the final military aid package for Ukraine. The new government of Slovakia rejected a previously submitted proposal to provide rockets and ammunition to Ukraine on Wednesday in keeping with incoming Prime Minister Robert Fico’s promise to stop giving Kyiv military support while it fights a Russian invasion.
Before the handover of power last month, the NATO country’s caretaker administration had proposed an aid package that comprised 4 million rounds of small weapons ammunition, over 5,000 pieces of 125 mm cannon ammunition, and 140 KUB air defense system rockets.
According to the government website, Fico’s administration rejected the plan at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
Fico led a campaign against sanctions against Russia and Western military backing for Ukraine. Viktor Orban, the leader of Hungary, agreed with Fico’s support for peace talks, but Kyiv disagreed.
After winning an election on September 30, Fico’s left-leaning SMER-SSD party allied with the nationalist SNS and center-left HLAS parties to create a government coalition.
Fico has frequently said that the nation will stop sending supplies to Ukraine from army stocks, but he has now clarified that this would not impact private commercial agreements.
The nation had been a steadfast supporter of Ukraine, and fighting vehicles, an S-300 air defense system and MiG-29 fighters were all provided by a previous center-right administration.
Before Fico was appointed, Slovakia—which borders Ukraine on the east—had delivered military help to Kyiv totaling 671 million euros in 13 packages since Russia’s incursion in February 2022.
According to diplomats, the army’s supply has almost entirely run out, so the impact of a formal suspension of military aid may be minimal.
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