The political crisis in Slovakia, caused by the murder of journalist Jan Kuciak and his girlfriend, is gaining momentum. In particular, Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Robert Kalinak announced his resignation last week, explaining it by prevailing public attitudes. The head of government himself, Robert Fico, has said he is ready to leave as well, but only if his party is allowed to choose the next prime minister. Media write that in this way, Fico wants to keep the current coalition in power and avoid an early election. All these changes are taking place against the backdrop of large-scale protests that took place across Slovakia lately and involved tens of thousands of people. According to France 24, the demonstrations were the largest since the anti-communist Velvet Revolution. No one has been identified as a suspect since the murder of the reporter who was investigating the involvement of the Italian mafia in corruption schemes in the country.
Slovak President Andrej Kiska had accepted the prime minister’s resignation offer. He gave a mandate to form a new government to Fico’s party colleague Peter Pellegrini, according to a Reuters report.
