Slovakia files criminal complaint against former PM for providing fighter jets to Ukraine

Slovakia’s defense ministry has lodged a criminal complaint against former Prime Minister Eduard Heger and his Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď for giving fighter jets to Ukraine, the current state secretary of the defense ministry, Igor Melicher, said on Friday.

Slovakia donated its entire fleet of Soviet-era MiG-29 fighters and two anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine the spring of 2023, making it the first country to send warplanes to Kyiv after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s all-out invasion in February 2022.

"This decision [to donate the jets] left the skies unprotected and citizens at safety risk," Melicher told at a press conference on Friday, calling the move unconstitutional.

"These two gentlemen managed to disarm Slovakia better than any other enemy," Melicher said. "I am convinced that Jaroslav Naď betrayed Slovakia, his homeland."

Heger, who served as prime minister from 2021-2023, and Naď, who was defense minister between 2020 and 2023, are suspected of committing sabotage, abusing the powers of public officials and breach of duty in the management of foreign property, according to the defense ministry.

Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák previously called Naď a traitor. "To weaken the armed forces in this way in violation of the constitution cannot be described in our political vocabulary as anything other than treason. I don’t know whether this also fulfills the substance of this crime, but this is a person who has betrayed national values," Kaliňák said on June 13.

Heger and Naď pushed back against the allegations in a mid-June press conference.

"Giving military material to Ukraine was not only a moral question, but also a question of some clear aligning of Slovakia in the Western world," said Naď, adding that he is very proud of the Heger government’s decision to help Ukraine.

Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, who was elected in October 2023, halted military aid to Ukraine shortly after taking office.