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Straits Times
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Slovak police detain eight in probe into military aid to Ukraine
Slovak police detain eight in probe into military aid to Ukraine Slovak police have detained eight people, including defence ministry officials, in an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor's Office into possible misuse of funds for military aid to Ukraine, the office said on Wednesday. Police confirmed earlier on Wednesday they were carrying out seizure operations in an EPPO prosecution, after media outlets reported authorities sought to detain a former defence minister who is out of the country on vacation. The EPPO, an independent body of the European Union, said four of those detained were officials at the defence ministry and that the value of the misused funds was 7.4 million euros ($8.51 million). It said it suspected top-ranking personnel of violating budgetary rules "by giving unjustified orders to purchase ammunition from two private companies," at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "EPPO suspects that the public procurement procedure was rigged and that the ammunition may have been overpriced," it said. The defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. News website Dennik N said earlier that police had wanted to detain former defence minister Jaroslav Nad, a member of the previous government. He denied allegations of wrongdoing related to Ukraine aid and wrote on Facebook on Wednesday how he was proud of assisting the country. Nad, calling the police action "theatre", said he was on vacation in Canada and due to return at the end of the month. Slovakia's leftist-nationalist government under Prime Minister Robert Fico has taken sharp policy turns since taking power in 2023, including stopping military aid to Ukraine and seeking better ties with Russia, which supplies it with oil and gas. Opposition officials and activists have been highly critical of the new policies, while the government has accused the previous administration of treason and other offences in its donations to Ukraine. A report from the Supreme Audit Office last year said errors related to budgetary rules were made in purchasing ammunition for Ukraine and it had handed findings to police. Fico has been critical of the European Union's Ukraine policy, saying weapons supplies prolong the war. On Tuesday, he criticised NATO plans to ramp up spending in the coming years and for the first time questioned Slovakia's place in the military alliance by saying neutrality would benefit the country. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Slovak police seek former defence minister over Ukraine aid, media report
(Reuters) -Slovak police attempted to detain a former defence minister and other former officials on Wednesday as part of investigations into how military aid was given to Ukraine, media outlets reported. The police confirmed they were carrying out seizure operations in a prosecution initiated by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), but gave no more details. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said on Facebook a team investigating ammunition donations to Ukraine under the former government, after Russia's invasion in 2022, was involved. EPPO did not immediately reply to a request for comment. News website Dennik N said police had sought to detain former defence minister Jaroslav Nad, who is out of the country on vacation, and another former ministry official. Nad has previously denied allegations of wrongdoing related to Ukraine aid. Police had detained the former head of a state-owned defence firm, Dennik N said. Slovakia's leftist-nationalist government under Prime Minister Robert Fico has taken sharp policy turns since taking power in 2023, including stopping military aid to Ukraine and seeking better ties with Russia, which supplies oil and gas to the country. Last year, Fico's government accused the previous administration of treason and other offences for various donations to Ukraine. In November, an investigation into discrepancies into data on the donations was set up. A report from the Supreme Audit Office last year had said errors related to budgetary rules were made in purchasing ammunition for Ukraine and it had handed findings to police. Nad has denied allegations against him, and he said on Wednesday on social media that he was on vacation in Canada and due to return at the end of the month. "Today's theatre honestly did not surprise or bother me," Nad said on Facebook. "I will keep repeating to myself how proud I am of how we helped Ukraine. I would do it again. And again." Separately, the government has also called on police to investigate the previous government for donating MiG-29 fighter planes and an air defence system to Ukraine. Fico has been vocally critical of European Union policy to Ukraine, saying weapons supplies prolong the war with Russia. On Tuesday, he criticised plans of NATO, in which Slovakia is a member, to ramp up spending in the coming years and for the first time questioned Slovakia's place in the military alliance by saying neutrality would benefit the country.
Straits Times
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Slovak police seek former defence minister over Ukraine aid, media report
Slovak police attempted to detain a former defence minister and other former officials on Wednesday as part of investigations into how military aid was given to Ukraine, media outlets reported. The police confirmed they were carrying out seizure operations in a prosecution initiated by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), but gave no more details. Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said on Facebook a team investigating ammunition donations to Ukraine under the former government, after Russia's invasion in 2022, was involved. EPPO did not immediately reply to a request for comment. News website Dennik N said police had sought to detain former defence minister Jaroslav Nad, who is out of the country on vacation, and another former ministry official. Nad has previously denied allegations of wrongdoing related to Ukraine aid. Police had detained the former head of a state-owned defence firm, Dennik N said. Slovakia's leftist-nationalist government under Prime Minister Robert Fico has taken sharp policy turns since taking power in 2023, including stopping military aid to Ukraine and seeking better ties with Russia, which supplies oil and gas to the country. Last year, Fico's government accused the previous administration of treason and other offences for various donations to Ukraine. In November, an investigation into discrepancies into data on the donations was set up. A report from the Supreme Audit Office last year had said errors related to budgetary rules were made in purchasing ammunition for Ukraine and it had handed findings to police. Nad has denied allegations against him, and he said on Wednesday on social media that he was on vacation in Canada and due to return at the end of the month. "Today's theatre honestly did not surprise or bother me," Nad said on Facebook. "I will keep repeating to myself how proud I am of how we helped Ukraine. I would do it again. And again." Separately, the government has also called on police to investigate the previous government for donating MiG-29 fighter planes and an air defence system to Ukraine. Fico has been vocally critical of European Union policy to Ukraine, saying weapons supplies prolong the war with Russia. On Tuesday, he criticised plans of NATO, in which Slovakia is a member, to ramp up spending in the coming years and for the first time questioned Slovakia's place in the military alliance by saying neutrality would benefit the country. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
