Critics warn of espionage risks, loss of trust within NATO as Slovakia restores military-diplomatic representation with Russia

When Robert Fico sat opposite Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin in May, the Slovak prime minister said relations between their countries should extend beyond energy supplies . He told the Russian president that steps had already been taken to restore military attaches at their respective embassies. Slovakia has sent two military officers — Brigadier General Slavomir Staviarsky and his deputy, Colonel Ivo Gahir — to Moscow and is preparing to receive a Russian military attache in Bratislava, restoring military-diplomatic representation for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 . The move has prompted criticism from opposition politicians, who question what Slovakia stands to gain.