2023-10-01 06:53:00
Slovaks go to the polls this Saturday for parliamentary elections, in a vote that might radically change Slovakia’s approach toward Ukraine and create deep rifts within NATO and the European Union.
The favorite, former Prime Minister Robert Fico, has made no secret of his affinity with the Kremlin during the election campaign. He has criticized the West for supporting Ukraine and has adopted a strong anti-American message, even accusing Slovakia’s president, Zuzana Čaputová, of being an “American agent.” He has said that, if elected, he would stop arms shipments to Ukraine and block Ukrainian ambitions in NATO.
Fico’s left-wing populist SMER party has been in the lead for months, although opinion polls released earlier this week showed SMER neck and neck with the Progressive Slovakia (PS) party.
The liberal PS party, led by European Parliament Vice President Michal Šimečka, advocates a completely different future for Slovakia, including strong and continued support for Kyiv and strong ties with the West.
Experts noted that Russian disinformation and propaganda have come to the fore during the election campaign, and criticized social media companies for not doing enough to stop them.
“Slovakia has been chosen (by Russia) as the country where there is fertile ground for the success of Russian pro-Kremlin and pro-war narratives,” Věra Jourová, the European Commission’s top digital affairs officer, said at a news conference. on Tuesday.
He said the election was a “test case” regarding the power of social media and misinformation. “The approach to the Russian war in Ukraine is a dividing line (in the election),” she said.
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