During the interview, the former PM touched on the issue of national interests in the European Council. According to Fico, the Czech and Slovak attitudes are similar. “Nobody from Brussels can force us to do anything. If we are to show solidarity, then on a voluntary basis. That is why I am glad that it was the Czech Republic and Slovakia that basically stopped mandatory quotas, which proved to be pointless, not functioning,” Fico said.
According to Fico, the attitude of the Visegrad Four, which criticizes the mandatory quotas, can be explained as an answer to a local historical experience. Fico believes that in 1938, everyone betrayed us, and this event gave Central European states the feeling they have to rely mainly on themselves.
Although Fico described V4 as an excellent organization whose existence he will always defend, he also talked about the need to be at the heart of European integration. “We have to be at the heart of the EU if we are to survive. But that is only our point of view,” Fico said, adding that he would never comment on the attitudes of Czech prime ministers and politicians.
