Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico stated on Wednesday (June 5th) that he forgives the attacker who attempted to assassinate him last month, marking his first public address since the incident took place.
Fico took to the social media platform Facebook on Wednesday to deliver a pre-recorded 14-minute speech. He said, “Now is the time for me to take the first step. That is forgiveness. I bear no hatred towards the stranger who shot me. I will not take any legal action against him, nor seek compensation.”
“I forgive him, to let him come to terms with what he has done and why he did it,” he added.
On May 15th, the 59-year-old Fico was shot four times and faced life-threatening injuries. It was the first major assassination attempt on a European political leader in over two decades, drawing condemnation from the international community. Political analysts view it as a manifestation of the increasingly polarized and fervent political climate in Slovakia and across Europe.
Prosecutors identified the suspected assassin as 71-year-old Juraj C., a former security guard at a shopping center and a published poet. Following the incident, the suspect was swiftly apprehended by the authorities. The gunman admitted that his actions were driven by political disagreements with Fico and that he had no intention to kill the Prime Minister.
Fico, who won his fourth term last year and was sworn in in October, is regarded as a left-wing populist leader with views on issues such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict that diverge significantly from the mainstream European perspective. After returning to office, Fico halted Slovakia’s military aid to Ukraine last year. He also opposes EU sanctions on Russia and seeks to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO.
In his speech on Wednesday, Fico expressed that these positions have made him a target of the assassination attempt. However, he reiterated that he does not harbor any hatred towards the gunman.
“He is merely a messenger of evil and political hatred, fueled to an uncontrollable degree by the failures and frustrations of the political opposition in Slovakia,” Fico stated, while also noting that he believes the assassination attempt was not a lone wolf act.
“I have no reason to believe this was an attack by a lone madman,” he said.
Fico appeared in good spirits during his address, and he pledged to return to his duties in approximately one month.