Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar speaking to Rudaw on September 25, 2024. Video: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The foreign minister of Slovakia condemned violent political expression on Wednesday, after a bullet was sent to a government office, and just months after the country’s prime minister was shot and seriously wounded.
“There was an assassination attack on our prime minister, and this is unacceptable in a democratic country and a democratic world,” Slovakian Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar told Rudaw’s Diyar Kurda in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)
In May, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot four times at close range following a meeting in central Slovakia. He underwent two lengthy surgeries, recovered, and returned to office in July.
Slovakian media had reported on Wednesday that a suspicious package was received at a government office addressed to Fico.
“The police will make an investigation of this bullet in the envelope,” Blanar added, expressing hope that Fico remains safe.
With conflicts surging in multiple areas of the world, Blanar said that leaders offering “peacemaking processes” should be heard instead of merely criticized or worse.
"It could happen anywhere around the globe, not only in Europe but also everywhere,” Blanar said.
Fico, who assumed office last autumn, shifted Slovakia’s foreign policy by refusing to continue military aid to Ukraine, which has been facing a Russian invasion since February 2022. Fico’s government has called for peace talks with Russia, advocating for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.
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