Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has urged dialogue with Moscow after attending its Victory Day commemorations

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has pushed back against what he described as a "new Iron Curtain" between the EU and Russia, calling for the restoration of pragmatic dialogue with Moscow instead of continuing "hatred."

Fico, who has described himself as one of the EU's "black sheep" over his stance on Russia, was the only sitting EU leader to travel to Moscow for Victory Day celebrations on May 9 and to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, drawing harsh criticism from Brussels and several member states.

In a video statement posted on Facebook on Saturday, Fico accused the EU of downplaying the Soviet Union's role in defeating Nazi Germany. Speaking aboard the Slovak government jet while returning from Moscow, he warned that Brussels' Russia policy was damaging the bloc's competitiveness and energy security.

He also shared footage of his visit.

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"I reject a new Iron Curtain between the European Union and Russia. We are interested in standard, friendly, and mutually beneficial relations with this world power," Fico said.

He argued that the EU was making a "huge mistake" by relying on sanctions and military support for Ukraine instead of direct political dialogue with Moscow.

He said his talks in the Kremlin focused heavily on energy cooperation, accusing the EU of pursuing an "ideological" policy of cutting off Russian energy supplies at the expense of European competitiveness.

"We cannot, just out of hatred for Russia, replace one energy dependence with another - this time American," he argued. According to energy data, the US supplied more than half of the bloc's liquefied natural gas imports in 2025.

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The European Commission has reportedly removed a proposal to fully phase out Russian oil imports from its near-term agenda amid concerns that the Iran war and continuing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz could further raise fuel prices and destabilize European energy supplies.

(RT.com)