Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico stated in a post on X that he has a ‘very serious message’ for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing.
‘The media reported on the official part of my meeting with Russian President V. Putin. After that, there followed an almost hour-long one-on-one discussion, during which we focused mainly on the war in Ukraine,’ Fico wrote. He added that Putin informed him about the negotiations with US President Donald Trump in Alaska and about the prospects for ending the war in Ukraine.
‘From this important conversation, I drew several conclusions and messages that I intend to convey to Ukrainian President V. Zelensky on Friday,’ Fico noted. The Slovak prime minister also spoke separately with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Beijing.
Fico was the only EU head of government to attend the Victory Day military parade on 3 September, where Hungary was represented by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó. The event, attended by Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, presented a unique opportunity for both Fico and Szijjártó to gather information from the parties involved in the conflict and in the broader peace process.
On 4 September, Fico also held bilateral talks with Xi Jinping, during which the Chinese president urged him to help promote China–EU ties. These statements echoed those made by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in May 2024, when Xi paid an official visit to Budapest.
In many respects, what Fico is doing resembles Orbán’s peace mission of July 2024. After Hungary assumed the six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union, Orbán travelled to Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing, Istanbul, the Vatican, and Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. He framed these visits as a ‘peace mission’ aimed at understanding the positions of the warring parties in Ukraine and the major powers capable of influencing a potential settlement.
Orbán faced unprecedented criticism from EU member states and Brussels for this initiative, with punitive measures even floated against Hungary for its perceived wrongdoing.
In December 2024, Orbán launched a second peace mission, visiting the same capitals and proposing a Christmas ceasefire to the warring parties—an initiative that was immediately rejected by Zelenskyy.
Now, one year later, the situation is markedly different. After Trump met Putin in Alaska, it initially appeared that the peace process might gain momentum. Yet half a month later it is clear this is not the case: Putin has no intention of meeting Zelenskyy—a summit Trump characterized as the next step towards peace.
Fico is scheduled to meet Zelenskyy on Friday, where he is expected to deliver Putin’s message. Speaking in China, Putin said peace in Ukraine would not be achieved until the West addressed NATO’s eastern expansion. He also declared that he was ready to meet Zelenskyy—but only in Moscow.
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