Slovak police tried to detain former Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad in a case involving military aid to Ukraine. Law enforcement officers detained the former head of a state defense enterprise.
This is reported by the Slovak media Dennik N, citing sources, and Reuters reports additional details.
Former Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad is currently on vacation in Canada and will return to the country at the end of the month. He denies all charges related to aid to Ukraine.
"Todayʼs theater, to be honest, did not surprise or excite me. I will continue to tell myself how proud I am of the way we helped Ukraine. I would do it again. And again," Nad said.
The police confirmed that they were investigating the case as part of a case initiated by the European Public Prosecutorʼs Office (EPPO), but did not provide further details. The EPPO did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Slovak Interior Minister Matusz Šutaj Estok said that the case involves a group investigating ammunition supplies to Ukraine during the previous governmentʼs time after the Russian invasion in 2022.
What preceded
Last year, Ficoʼs government accused the previous government of treason and a number of other crimes due to the transfer of various weapons to Ukraine.
In June 2024, the media reported that the Slovak Ministry of Defense had initiated a criminal case against former Acting Prime Minister Eduard Heger and former Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad for the transfer of MiG-29 fighters and Kub anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine in March 2023 during Hegerʼs term in office.
Because of their military assistance to Ukraine, they are suspected of sabotage, abuse of power, and abuse of official duties in the disposal of other peopleʼs property.
Nagy defended the decision to provide Ukraine with MiGs as “legally sound” because it was “based on legal analysis and collective government approval”. His allies said the criminal complaint was part of a hybrid war emanating from Russia, Bloomberg reported at the time.
At the same time, State Secretary of the Slovak Ministry of Defense Ihor Meliher stated that there is no legal analysis that would allow the interim government to transfer military equipment to another country.
Last year, the audit service discovered violations of financial rules during the procurement of ammunition for Ukraine — this data was passed on to the police.
- The left-wing nationalist government of Slovakia, led by Prime Minister Robert Fico, which came to power in 2023, has radically changed its policy, in particular, stopping military aid to Ukraine and starting to seek better relations with Russia, which supplies the country with oil and gas.
- Fico has repeatedly criticized the EUʼs policy towards Ukraine, claiming that arms supplies only prolong the war with Russia.
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