Slovak Police Detain Ukrainian Citizen Over Coup Allegations
On January 30, the Slovak police detained a Ukrainian citizen on suspicion of planning a coup in Slovakia. According to Slovak media Aktuality, the man is being held at the border police office and will be deported back to Ukraine.
The detainee’s deportation has not been scheduled yet. The Slovak police did not provide more information about the case.
Slovakia and Ukraine have had tense relations this month. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was called an “enemy” of Slovakia by Prime Minister Robert Fico. In response, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry referred to Fico as the Kremlin’s mouthpiece.
The Ukrainian government has established contact with the detainee and his family. The embassy claims that the man is accused of threatening Slovakia’s national security.
Some Slovak politicians are questioning the case. Opposition lawmaker Juraj Krupa thinks it might be a trumped-up charge, saying that if the man was planning to organize a coup, he would not have acted alone.
Richard Gluck from Fico’s party wants more information about potential accomplices in the alleged plot. This is amid escalating tensions between Slovakia and Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry summoned Slovak Ambassador Pavel Vizdal on January 30 to express its rejection of Bratislava’s claims that Kyiv is interfering in Slovakia’s internal affairs.
Slovakia has accused Ukraine of interfering after Fico claimed that Ukraine was connected to a cyberattack on Slovakia’s national insurance company. However, this was denied by the Ukrainian government.
The situation between the two countries continues to deteriorate due to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and energy crisis.
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