Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has survived an assassination attempt and is no longer in life-threatening condition, according to a government minister. Fico was shot five times on Wednesday while leaving a government meeting and underwent hours of surgery. The gunman, who has been identified as a 71-year-old man, was overpowered by police.
The attack has shocked Slovakia and drawn international condemnation. Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Environment Minister Tomas Taraba told the BBC’s Newshour that Fico is “out of surgery and in stable condition.” Taraba said one bullet went through Fico’s stomach and a second hit a joint.
Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok had said earlier that Fico was in a life-threatening condition while he remained in the operating room. “This assassination (attempt) was politically motivated and the perpetrator’s decision was born closely after the presidential election,” Sutaj Estok said, referring to an April election won by a Fico ally, Peter Pellegrini.
The shooting in the central Slovak town of Handlova stunned the small central European nation and drew international condemnation. Slovakia, a member of NATO and the European Union, has little history of political violence.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden joined Slovakia’s EU partners in expressing shock and condemnation of the shooting. The country of 5.4 million has seen polarised political debate in recent years, including the hard-fought presidential election last month that helped tighten Fico’s grip on power.
Fico, a dominant force in Slovakia for two decades, has drawn criticism for taking a more pro-Russian stance in the Ukraine war. Describing the shooting as a “monstrous” crime, Putin said in a telegram sent to Slovakia’s President Zuzana Caputova: “I know Robert Fico as a courageous and strong-minded man. I very much hope that these qualities will help him to survive this difficult situation.”
Biden offered U.S. help to Slovakia, saying in a statement: “We condemn this horrific act of violence.” Slovakia’s biggest opposition party Progressive Slovakia called off a planned protest and called for restraint to avoid escalating tensions. Parliament suspended debate indefinitely after the attack.
