Robert Fico Suggests Commemorating 1938 Munich Betrayal in Slovakia

Bratislava, September 29 (TASR) – If there are voices in Parliament calling for the creation of a commemoration day to recall the 1968 invasion of erstwhile Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact armies, then it’s appropriate for Smer-SD to initiate also the creation of 1938 Munich Betrayal commemoration day, as Czechoslovakia was the Munich Agreement’s sole victim, TASR learnt from Smer-SD press department on Tuesday.

According to Fico, September 29 should be commemorated in Slovakia as a memento of the fact that big countries such as Great Britain, Germany or France will never take interests of small countries into consideration, if they stand in the way of their own interests. “The Munich Agreement was the worst betrayal of the Slovaks and Czechs in history. If another serious crisis situation ever emerges, we need to think hard about how to respond because we can’t rely on anyone other than ourselves. History serves as evidence to that,” he said.

Fico pointed out that Slovakia lacks a sizeable military. Therefore, the best strategy for Bratislava is the diligent observance of international law. “The Munich Betrayal must be commemorated along with the invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Warsaw Pact armies in 1968, which meant the end of democratic process in Czechoslovakia while the whole world watched. In this context, both events bear striking similarities,” he added.

The outcome of the 1938 Munich Agreement was the essential surrender of Czechoslovakia and its handing over to Adolf Hitler, who split the state and ended its existence. “In 1938, Czechoslovakia was practically the only democratic country in Central and Eastern Europe. Economically speaking, we were a very strong country, even the tenth most developed globally according to statistics. Hitler received our land, our armament industry and our fortifications practically for free,” declared Fico.