Slovakia’s transfer of MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine was not a criminal offense, the Bratislava prosecutor’s office said Monday.
Slovakia donated its entire fleet of Soviet-era MiG-29 fighters and two anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine in 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.
The current defense ministry — in Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government, which has maintained warm ties with Russia despite its ongoing assault — last June lodged a criminal complaint against former Prime Minister Eduard Heger and his Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď, who had taken the fighter jets decision.
Both pushed back against the ministry’s allegations that they had committed sabotage, abuse of power and breach of duty in the management of public property.
The Bratislava investigator halted the criminal prosecution on Oct. 30 “because it was sufficiently established that the act in question does not constitute a criminal offense and there is no reason to refer the case further,” a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office told POLITICO.
The probe concluded that the donation of military equipment to Ukraine hadn’t caused any harm to Slovakia, as defined by the country’s Criminal Code, the spokesperson said.
“Nor was it proven that members of the government acted with the intent to obtain an unlawful benefit for themselves or others, or that they exercised their authority in a manner contrary to the law or exceeded their powers,” she added.
In a post on Facebook, Naď said: “It has been confirmed what I have repeatedly said: that the government of Eduard Heger, with me as Minister of Defense, acted not only morally correctly but also in the national interest of the Slovak Republic and fully in accordance with applicable laws and the constitution in connection with the donation of the MiG-29 aircraft.”
Naď added that he expects an apology from Fico’s government.
Slovak prosecutor decides giving Ukraine fighter jets was not a crime
Source: Viral Showbiz Pinay
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