However, the head of the Slovak government did not participate in the traditional morning parade on Red Square, wrote the Russian edition of the BBC station. From the beginning, Fico stated that he would not go to the parade itself, which domestic critics call a cowardly alibi.
Russian agencies published a photo of Fico shaking hands with Putin. Fica was welcomed by a guard of honor and an orchestra at the red carpet, the Russian state agency TASS reported on the arrival of the Slovak prime minister in the Kremlin.
In addition to Fico, the subsequent reception was attended by representatives of other countries, including leaders from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Laos and Malaysia, TASS reported, adding that Putin will hold bilateral talks with the Slovak prime minister.
“I refuse to distort historical facts”
During the meeting with Putin, Robert Fico “thanked for the traditional Russian hospitality” and congratulated him on the most important national holiday on behalf of his government. “Mr. President, history unites us in an extraordinary way. I refuse to distort historical facts,” said the Slovak prime minister, stating that he will not back down from what he describes as a “sovereign foreign policy”.
“It is oriented towards everyone who is interested in having correct relations with everyone who is interested in standard and friendly relations with Slovakia,” said Fico at the joint table with Vladimir Putin.
Subsequently, he emphasized the importance of the liberation of Slovakia by the Red Army.
“I want to say very clearly that I am opposed to building a new iron curtain between the European Union and Russia,” continued Fico, emphasizing Russian-Slovak relations, which he wants to build on mutual cooperation, including through international commissions.
On Friday, the Slovak prime minister bowed and laid wreaths at the monument to the unknown soldier, where he told journalists that he wanted to ask Putin questions and deliver messages from European politicians.
Photo: Grigory Sysoev, Reuters
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting on May 9, 2026
Planned bilateral meeting
Before his departure, he announced that he would meet with Putin briefly and wanted to talk with him about the “approaching end of the Russian-Ukrainian war” and about the possibilities of a peaceful solution. The team followed up on its long-term rhetoric, in which it criticizes the increase in military support for Kyiv and promotes more diplomatic negotiations, which puts it in sharp contrast to the mainstream of EU and NATO politics.
According to Russian sources, the Kremlin perceives Fico’s participation in the May 9 celebrations as proof that Russia is not isolated on the international scene, and is intensively using the visit in domestic propaganda.
The current meeting in Moscow fits into a series of contacts that Fico has been developing with the Kremlin in recent months. In December 2024, he already negotiated with Putin in Moscow about gas supplies, energy and the possibilities of ending the war in Ukraine, with both sides then emphasizing the need for “mutually beneficial” relations.
Fico thus became one of the few leaders of EU member states who personally went to the Kremlin after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
