Zelenskyy slams Slovakia's PM for insulting Slovaks who raised money for shells for Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has responded to the scepticism expressed by Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico about raising funds for ammunition for Ukraine amid the Fico government’s reluctance to provide military support to Kyiv.
Zelenskyy was asked at a joint press conference with Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová to comment on the Slovak prime minister's disdain for the Slovak fundraising of over €4 million for purchasing ammunition for Ukraine and what he thought of the position of some Slovak politicians who believe that military support for Ukraine only prolongs the war.
First of all, Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude to the citizens of Slovakia who, "despite everything and everyone", have been supporting Ukrainians since the beginning of the war.
The president said scepticism about supporting Ukraine exists "until the war comes to your home".
"I hope that people in Slovakia, those who still have this scepticism about Putin's plans, will never see what Ukrainians have seen. I hope the war does not come to their territory," the president said.
Zelenskyy added that Ukraine will become weaker if it is not helped, and "Putin will pursue the complete destruction of our [Ukrainian] state".
"The complete occupation of our state means that he [Putin] will be on the borders of your state," Zelenskyy said, responding to a Slovak journalist.
"If Russia is on your border – whether your people want it or not – missiles will fly, of course, because this is a war... It is essential for some sceptical people to understand that today their children go to school, and I think it is much better that their children are alive and do not go to school in the basement," the president added.
Earlier, leading Ukrainian figures thanked the people of Slovakia who raised millions of euros to purchase shells for Ukraine.
Slovakian President Zuzana Čaputová paid a farewell visit to Kyiv on Friday (10 May) as her term in office comes to an end.