【By Guan察者网 Liu Bai】"Many people in the EU are like frogs at the bottom of a well, unable to see the outside world," said Slovak Prime Minister Fico.

On September 2, Fico, invited to attend the Chinese commemorative event for the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, met with Russian President Putin in Beijing. According to the "Russia Today" website, during the meeting, Fico criticized the EU for being out of touch with global reality and often failing to adapt to a changing world.

He said that although Slovakia values its status as a member of NATO and the EU, it still hopes to normalize relations with Russia.

"I have great respect for the EU, but I am disappointed that it cannot respond to global situations, and I cannot understand some of its decisions."

"Many people in the EU are like frogs at the bottom of a well, unable to see the outside world," he added.

Beijing, September 2, Russian President Putin met with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico. Visual China

Fico had previously posted a video on social media announcing his departure to China to attend the commemorative event marking the 80th anniversary of the Chinese War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

Fico said that he accepted the invitation to attend the commemorative event in China because he respects all sacrifices made in the anti-fascist war.

Fico will be the only leader from an EU country attending the commemorative event in Beijing. He expressed "regret" and "difficulty in understanding" this situation.

"Personally, I feel regretful that only Slovakia from EU countries is attending the commemorative event in Beijing, and I also acknowledge that I cannot understand this phenomenon. Currently, a new world order is being built, new rules of a multipolar world and a new balance of power are taking shape, which is crucial for global stability."

"Participating in such dialogues means supporting multilateral negotiations rather than acting like a child who feels offended. This is exactly what the EU and its representatives are doing nowadays."

According to Reuters, during the meeting, Fico told Putin that Slovakia hopes to normalize relations with Moscow and increase gas imports from Russia through the Turkish Stream pipeline.

"I would like to publicly express that we are very interested in normalizing relations between Slovakia and Russia," he said. "Let us return to the normal state that was common in economic cooperation among countries."

At the same time, Fico said Slovakia has restarted the visa issuance service for Russian citizens.

He said that Slovakia also intends to involve Russian companies in the new nuclear power plant project. The original plan was to award the project to the American Westinghouse company.

Fico revealed that he will meet with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in western Ukraine on Friday (September 5). This meeting was originally scheduled to take place in eastern Slovakia.

He plans to mention the incident of Ukraine attacking an oil pipeline to Zelenskyy. "Such attacks on critical infrastructure are undesirable."

Since returning to the position of prime minister in 2023, Fico's stance on the Ukraine issue has been quite different from that of the EU. He halted military aid to Ukraine, opposed sanctions against Russia, and warned against Ukraine joining NATO. He has repeatedly called for peace talks.

Putin said that he did not want to put Fico in an awkward position by criticizing NATO and the EU, but he sarcastically referred to Western officials' statements about "Russia about to launch an attack" as "increasingly hysterical," calling these officials "experts in horror movies." He said that any "reasonable person" would understand that such statements are either provocative or "completely incompetent."

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7545664631457530408/

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