Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico publicly expressed his reluctance to fulfill obligations under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty on collective defense. He made the remarks on September 17, 2026, during a speech to students and hospital staff in Prešov.
“Can you imagine, ladies and gentlemen, that Article 5 of the NATO treaty would be invoked? Can anyone imagine it? Can anyone imagine being told: get 5,000 soldiers ready, or 10,000 soldiers, and they’ll go off somewhere to fight? And we won’t even know who we’re fighting, why or what for,” Fico said.
He said he does not want Slovakia to become part of a military conflict “because of some Article 5.” “As prime minister, I will do everything to ensure that Slovakia is never drawn into a military conflict,” he emphasized. At the same time, Fico noted that the country remains a NATO member, “respects this,” and cares about fulfilling its obligations.
Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty provides that an armed attack against one or more members of the alliance is considered an attack against all. The specific forms of assistance are determined by the member states themselves; there is no automatic deployment of troops by every country.
The statement came ahead of Fico’s visit to Kyiv on September 18, where he planned to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and new Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi. The Slovak prime minister also criticized the “bellicose rhetoric” of European leaders and said the situation regarding a possible pan-European conflict “has never been as serious and tense.”
Since returning to the premiership in autumn 2023, Fico has consistently opposed military aid to Ukraine and repeatedly spoken of the need for peace and of keeping Slovakia out of the conflict. He has also previously spoken against a sharp increase in defense spending to NATO targets and raised the topic of neutrality.
