Slovak prosecutor reopens probe into fighter jet donation to Ukraine

Slovakia's top prosecutor ordered on Friday a ​new probe into the ​donation of MiG-29 fighter jets ‌and air ​defence systems to Ukraine by the country's previous government, restarting an investigation ended earlier this year. The current ‌government of Prime Minister Robert Fico, which pursues a more pro-Russian foreign policy and ended military aid for Ukraine, has repeatedly attacked the donation made in 2023.

The ‌decision reopens a criminal case at the centre of a dispute between ‌Fico's government and its predecessors over military support for Ukraine. Fico has said the donations left the country dependent on allied air patrolling, and a senior official in his party ⁠called it ​sabotage.

The country's chief ⁠prosecutor, Maros Zilinka, said on Facebook on Friday he had ordered a new investigation as ⁠the previous one ended prematurely. "In the preparatory proceedings, facts were not established in an extent ​necessary for a decision," he said.

A Bratislava regional prosecutor, Rastislav Remeta, ⁠said in ending the previous probe in February this year that the dozen Soviet-era MiG-29 jets ⁠and ​the KUB air defence systems were outdated, not fully operational and lacked pilots and missiles. He said their donation was no crime. The defence minister ⁠at the time, Jaroslav Nad, has denied any wrongdoing.

The case is an illustration ⁠of the ⁠highly polarised Slovak political scene, where Fico has repeatedly accused his predecessors of pursuing criminal prosecutions against his party when he ‌was in ‌opposition.