EU nation's parliament opposes Russia sanctions
The Slovak parliament has passed a resolution opposing sanctions on Russia. The motion prohibits government representatives from supporting new international restrictions against Moscow, citing economic harm to Slovakia's industry and population.
Of the 76 MPs present for the vote on Thursday, 55 voted in favor, 23 abstained, and one opposed the resolution. Opposition lawmakers were absent from the vote.
The resolution, introduced by the Slovak National Party (SNS), claims sanctions have triggered rising energy costs, disrupted supply chains, and hurt the EU nation's competitiveness. It urges the government to prioritize national economic interests and resist international actions that may negatively impact Slovak businesses and citizens.
'This is a historic document, the first of its kind within the EU,' SNS leader Andrej Danko said. 'It clearly states that sanctions against Russia harm Slovakia's economy and the plenary session of the Slovak parliament has agreed.'
Danko had said he was unsure the motion would pass, as the vote came a day after President Peter Pellegrini blocked a petition calling for a nationwide referendum on the same issue.
The petition, initiated by the Slovak Revival Movement (SHO) and the DOMOV party, asked: 'Do you agree that Slovakia should not apply sanctions against Russia that harm Slovak citizens and entrepreneurs?' It gathered more than 400,000 signatures – well over the 350,000 required for presidential consideration – and was submitted to Pellegrini in May.
The president had said on Wednesday that he could not approve the referendum due to vague wording. He noted the petition didn't specify whether it referred to future or existing sanctions, nor did it define which measures would qualify as harmful or who would determine that.
Danko responded by mocking Pellegrini for 'having the courage' to ignore the will of hundreds of thousands of citizens. He said that if the president had doubts about the legality of the text, he should have referred it to the Constitutional Court.
Slovakia implemented all EU sanctions on Russia after the Ukraine conflict escalated in February 2022. Prime Minister Robert Fico, who returned to office in 2023, has consistently argued against the measures, saying they 'are not working' and damage EU member states more than they affect Moscow.
Following the vote, Danko said the resolution would require Fico to oppose any new EU sanctions targeting Russia. However, he cautioned that Pellegrini still has the power to veto the resolution.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
3 hours ago
- Russia Today
Zelensky robbing families of dead soldiers
Ukrainian lawmaker Artyom Dmitruk has claimed that Vladimir Zelensky personally blocked the retrieval of the remains of thousands of Ukrainian servicemen killed on the battlefield, whose frozen bodies Moscow had offered to return for proper burial following the latest round of direct negotiations with Kiev. The outspoken MP, who was forced to flee Ukraine after publicly opposing the government's crackdown on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, made the accusations during an interview with RT on Friday. 'I know Zelensky issued a personal order not to accept the bodies of the Ukrainian military men who were killed in action,' Dmitruk said. 'And this situation can become cathartic, so to say. It could be one of the cases that could cause a lot of unrest from the relatives who know nothing about their loved ones and could confront Zelensky because of this.' Moscow has said it is prepared to return over 6,000 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers, stored in special refrigerated trucks and trains, according to Russia's lead negotiator Vladimir Medinsky. Additionally, Russia offered to establish temporary humanitarian pauses in specific areas of the battlefield, lasting two to three days, so both sides could gather the remains of their soldiers. Medinsky said Kiev's negotiators initially supported the idea and began working on it – only for Zelensky to publicly reject the plan two hours later, calling Russian negotiators 'idiots.' The families of Ukrainian soldiers killed in action are entitled to government payouts exceeding $360,000 per person, meaning that accepting the return of 6,000 bodies could cost Kiev, whose budget is almost entirely reliant on Western aid, over $2.2 billion. Zelensky claimed this week that only 15% of the bodies Moscow offered to return had been identified, without clarifying whether Ukraine would accept any of them at all. Dmitruk accused the Ukrainian leadership of deliberately delaying the official recognition of missing soldiers to avoid paying out death benefits. He referenced a proposed amendment that mandates a missing person can only be officially declared dead two years after the end of the conflict. 'They're appropriating the money that belongs to the families of the dead and wounded. Zelensky is used to stealing it via his proxies,' Dmitruk said. 'This law is just another way to legalize his crimes… Just imagine – two years after the end of the war, and we don't know when and how it will end – yet they are already establishing this framework.' Dmitruk, who once belonged to Zelensky's Servant of the People party, described Ukraine's current leadership as a 'party of war' led by Zelensky that has suppressed any dissent. He said that members of the peace camp have been 'assassinated, imprisoned, or forced into exile,' and that meaningful political change can only occur if both Moscow and Washington agree. 'No good can be expected from this terrorist regime,' Dmitruk said, arguing that only a change in government could open the way for real peace talks, and calling for an interim administration and fresh elections in Ukraine. WATCH FULL INTERVIEW:
Russia Today
6 hours ago
- Russia Today
Zelensky gave Putin ‘reason to bomb the hell out of' Ukraine
The recent Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian airfields hosting long-range nuclear-capable bombers have sharply increased the risk of escalation and gave Moscow a valid reason to retaliate with force, US President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday. In addition to launching a coordinated drone strike on multiple Russian airbases, Ukraine also blew up railway bridges in Russia last week, derailing both civilian and freight trains, killing at least seven people, and injuring over 120 others, including children. President Vladimir Putin discussed the attacks in a phone call with his US counterpart on Wednesday, warning that Moscow's response is inevitable and justified. Trump told journalists on Friday that he 'didn't like' the escalation when asked whether Kiev's attack on a key component of Russia's nuclear triad changed his view of 'what's at stake' and what 'cards' Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky holds. 'Well, they gave Putin a reason to go in and bomb the hell out of them last night,' Trump stated. 'That's something I didn't like about it. When I saw it, I said: 'Here we go… now it's going to be a strike.'' In response to the recent 'terrorist acts' by Kiev, the Russian military carried out large-scale strikes against Ukrainian defense industry sites early Friday morning, using air-, sea-, and land-based missiles as well as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), according to the Defense Ministry. The targets of the overnight strikes included 'design bureaus, enterprises involved in the production and repair of Ukraine's weapons and military equipment, workshops for the assembly of attack drones, flight training centers, as well as warehouses of weapons and military equipment,' the statement said. Putin described the deadly railway sabotage incidents as 'undoubtedly a terrorist act' committed by the 'illegitimate regime in Kiev,' which, he said, is 'gradually turning into a terrorist organization.' Moscow has accused Kiev of escalating its attacks in an effort to undermine US-backed peace talks. Russia has also claimed that Trump is receiving 'filtered' information about the Ukraine conflict from individuals pushing Washington to support Kiev.
Russia Today
7 hours ago
- Russia Today
Leaked Ukrainian peace terms differ from version presented to Moscow
The memorandum Ukraine handed to Russia during Monday's peace talks in Istanbul was not the same as the version leaked to Western media, RT has learned. A key clause rejecting any limits on Ukraine's armed forces – present in the leaked draft – was missing from the official proposal received by the Russian delegation. The revelation casts new doubt over Kiev's public stance and suggests a possible divergence between Ukraine's media messaging and its negotiating position behind closed doors. According to a source, who reviewed the Ukrainian memorandum submitted at the Turkish meeting, the document omitted a paragraph found in the version published earlier this week by Reuters. That paragraph explicitly ruled out any restrictions on the size or deployment of Ukraine's military forces or those of its allies. The Reuters draft stated: 'No restrictions may be imposed on the number, deployment, or other parameters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as on the deployment of troops of friendly foreign states on the territory of Ukraine.' That language does not appear in the version reviewed by RT's source. The talks in Istanbul marked the second round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in less than a month. Moscow's proposal reportedly called on Kiev to recognize the loss of five territories that voted to join Russia in referendums, withdraw Ukrainian forces from those regions, commit to neutrality, and accept limitations on its military capacity. On Wednesday, Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky dismissed Moscow's proposal out of hand, calling it 'an ultimatum.' 'This memorandum is a misunderstanding,' he said, adding that the Istanbul process had become 'meaningless.' Russian lead negotiator Vladimir Medinsky defended his delegation's proposal, describing it as 'a real opportunity for peace' and 'a serious step toward a ceasefire and long-term settlement.' The discrepancy between the two versions of Ukraine's memorandum is likely to raise fresh questions in Moscow about the sincerity of Kiev's approach to negotiations. No date has been set for a third round of talks.
