Slovakia backs joining Ukraine compensation commission despite Russian objections

Slovakia's government on Wednesday approved a proposal to join the Convention on the Establishment of the International Compensation Commission for Ukraine — an agreement Russia's Foreign Ministry had specifically raised objections to with Slovakia. The news was reported by Dennik N, as cited by Yevropeiska Pravda.

Slovakia had originally planned to join the convention earlier this year, but Prime Minister Robert Fico ultimately withdrew the country's signature. He later reversed course, as confirmed by Wednesday's cabinet decision.

Fico acknowledged that negotiations on the matter had been suspended last week at his instruction. Speaking after a cabinet meeting in Nitra, the prime minister said it was "quite normal" for another state to voice disagreement with a particular decision.

"Yes, it's true — yesterday I learned from our ambassador about information from the Russian side that they don't like this claims commission convention," Fico admitted, according to Teraz.sk. He nonetheless dismissed what he called "opposition hysteria" surrounding the issue. He said negotiations had been paused last week to clarify certain details, and the decision was approved on Wednesday.

Fico stressed that the claims commission is envisioned under a Council of Europe convention and that, while the commission's future decisions would not be legally binding, he characterized the convention as a strong political gesture. Slovakia's accession still requires ratification by parliament.

A day earlier, Ivan Novotny, a politician from the opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party, claimed Russia may have pressured Fico's government into staying out of the convention. According to Novotny, Slovakia was due to sign the convention in July, but Fico withdrew the signature — a move Novotny said followed Russian threats against Bratislava.

The Convention on the Establishment of the International Compensation Commission is the second component of the international compensation mechanism, alongside the Register of Damage. It was opened for signature on 16 December 2025 at a high-level diplomatic conference in The Hague, where it was signed by a record 35 states and the European Union. Among EU members, Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria did not sign at the time.