Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico today dismissed as a lie a report by the Brussels-based portal Politiko according to which he said in a confidential conversation with some European officials that he was shocked by the condition of US President Donald Trump when he recently spoke with him in Florida.
Politico, citing European diplomats, wrote that Fico, who is a Trump ally, told leaders on the sidelines of last week's EU summit in Brussels that he was concerned about the way the US president spoke to him.
Fico strongly rejected the "lies of Politika" today on the X network, which he called a "hated pro-Brussels liberal portal".
"It is a sad look at the liberal and progressive political and media world. Abuse of criminal law to destroy opponents, rejection of different opinions and attempts to assassinate political leaders in Slovakia and the US," Fico wrote.
He said he must "strongly reject the lies of the Politiko portal" about how he allegedly assessed his meeting with US President Trump during an informal summit in Brussels, where, as he added, no one heard, saw or witnessed anything, which did not prevent the portal from publishing the lies.
It is known, Fico added, that he is one of the "favorite" topics of that portal, where "sovereignty, the fight for national interests and one's own opinion are considered crimes."
He then stated that he did not speak at the informal meeting in Brussels and that no other prime ministers spoke, nor did he speak unofficially with any prime minister or president about his visit to the US. He said that he had openly criticized the summit, its preparation and convening.
He pointed out that there were persistent attempts to prevent his visit to the US, as was the case with his visit to Russia, when EU member states did not even allow him to fly over their territory, and added that "this is what is called solidarity."
"I agree with many of the US president's strategies, but I disagree with some. I honestly thought that after my harsh statement on Venezuela, my visit to the US would be canceled, and that did not happen, which is why I appreciate the meeting with the US president even more," Fico wrote.
He accused Politiko of aiming to “destroy the constructive ties that Slovakia has with all four corners of the world,” and said that it also affects Slovakia’s interests in diversifying its peaceful nuclear program and cooperating with the US.
He stressed that he does not need a loudspeaker to express critical opinions, and that perhaps his pointing out the need to remove EU High Representative Kaja Kalas is a sufficient example of this.
Politiko reported this morning that Fico expressed concern about the US president's "psychological state," citing five diplomats who were briefed on the conversation the Slovak prime minister had. Fico reportedly used the word "dangerous" to describe how the US president appeared to him during their meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on January 17, according to two of the diplomats.
The conversation between Fico and his European colleagues took place in Brussels on January 22nd on the sidelines of an emergency EU summit organized to discuss transatlantic relations after Trump's threat to take over Greenland, Politiko reported, adding that the leaders used the meeting to try to calm tensions after the US president backed down from a threat to impose additional tariffs on some European countries over the issue.
As Politiko reported, again citing diplomats, Fico made these comments during a separate informal conversation with some EU leaders, not during the formal part of the gathering. While none of the diplomats who spoke to Politiko were present when Fico made the remarks, they were separately briefed on the content of the conversation by individual leaders shortly after it took place, Politiko reported.
Politico says they were granted anonymity to discuss confidential exchanges between the leaders, adding that they come from four different EU governments, while the fifth is a senior EU official. All, according to Politico, said they did not know the details of what Trump allegedly told Fico that prompted his reaction.
Politico reports that Fico's comments are particularly significant because he is among the most pro-Trump European politicians and has boasted about his approach to the US president. Politico also reported that Fico has rejected the allegations.
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