Slovak Parliament Speaker Expects United Front from President and PM at NATO Ankara Summit

Slovak parliamentary speaker Richard Raši has said he does not expect any public disagreement between President Peter Pellegrini and Prime Minister Robert Fico at the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, despite the absence of a formally approved government position paper ahead of the meeting. Raši, who heads the National Council — Slovakia's parliament — and is a member of the ruling Hlas-SD party, said both leaders would speak with a single voice at the summit even without the formal backing of an approved government document. His comments come amid ongoing tension between Pellegrini and Fico, who, though political allies in government, have shown signs of diverging views on foreign and security policy in recent months. Pellegrini leads Hlas-SD, a center-left party, while Fico leads Smer-SD, the dominant force in the three-party ruling coalition, which has drawn criticism for its close alignment with Russia and skepticism toward Western institutions. However, Ivan Štefunko, a commentator and political observer, warned that even if both leaders maintain a united appearance in Ankara, the real test will come after their return, when their statements and positions taken at the summit may be subject to public and political scrutiny. The NATO summit in Ankara is a significant diplomatic event at which member states are expected to discuss alliance security, defense spending, and ongoing conflicts including the war in Ukraine — a topic on which Slovakia's government has faced sustained criticism from opposition parties and EU partners.