(VOVWORLD) - Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is no longer in a life-threatening condition after he was shot in an assassination attempt when leaving a government meeting on Wednesday, a government minister said.
 Security officers move Slovak PM Robert Fico in a car after a shooting incident, after a Slovak government meeting in Handlova, Slovakia, May 15, 2025. (REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa) |
The gunman shot Fico, 59, five times, initially leaving the prime minister in critical condition and undergoing surgery hours later on Wednesday evening.
"I was very shocked ... fortunately as far as I know the operation went well - and I guess in the end he will survive ... he's not in a life-threatening situation at this moment," Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Environment Minister Tomas Taraba told the BBC's Newshour.
“This assassination (attempt) was politically motivated and the perpetrator's decision was born closely after the presidential election," Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said said, referring to an April election won by a Fico ally, Peter Pellegrini.
Slovak media said the shooting in the central Slovak town of Handlova was carried out by a 71-year-old man.
Slovakia, a member of NATO and the European Union, has little history of political violence.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden joined Slovakia's EU partners in expressing shock and condemnation of the shooting.