Fico Meets Macron in Paris to Discuss Nuclear Energy, Defence and Ukraine
Paris/Bratislava 29 January (TASR) - Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday, stating that they held a confidential discussion lasting almost two hours.
The meeting revolved around nuclear energy, defence, EU competitiveness and Ukraine, the Slovak prime minister reported in a social media post.
Fico stated that the meeting demonstrated the closeness between France and Slovakia stemming from their strategic partnership agreement. With respect to cooperation in nuclear energy, the Slovak prime minister confirmed that he'll meet top representatives of Electricite de France (EDF) and Framatome and also take part in a nuclear summit in Paris in March.
The leaders addressed defence as well. "Given the concept of a stronger, more independent and more sovereign EU, which I also support, it was natural that we paid attention to the opportunities created by the advanced arms industry in France and the dynamically developing Slovak defence industry," said the prime minister.
When it came to the European agenda, competitiveness dominated the discussion. In this context, Fico asked Macron to consider initiatives that Slovakia, along with other member states, will present at the informal meeting of the European Council in February aimed at reducing electricity prices.
In addition, they discussed EU enlargement, particularly to include the countries of the Western Balkans. The head of the Slovak government stressed that, in his view, the EU is acting unfairly towards Serbia in this area.
Another item was the war in Ukraine. Fico stressed that he and the French president hold different views on some aspects of the conflict. He presented Macron with his vision of further developments in the war and informed him about the humanitarian aid provided by Slovakia to Ukraine.
Fico also presented the French president with the priorities of Slovakia's upcoming presidency of the Visegrad Four (V4: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia) and highlighted the importance of a possible meeting of V4 prime ministers and the French president in the second half of 2026.
