Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has labeled Ukraine’s rejection of a potential peace deal with Russia in 2022 a “catastrophic mistake,” asserting that years of Western military backing have failed to defeat Russia and now heighten the risk of direct conflict between NATO and Russia.

In a video address posted on X, Fico stated both sides have sustained “terrible” losses over the years, and Western military support has been unable to contain Russia’s advances. “There is no supranational force to compel Russia to withdraw from the militarily controlled Ukrainian territory,” he said.

Fico specifically criticized Ukraine for making a “huge mistake in April 2022” by listening to “Russophobic West” and refusing to sign a prepared peace agreement with Russia. He added that Western strategy—“to support the war in Ukraine to the last Ukrainian soldier and defeat Russia”—has “completely failed.” Fico reiterated his government would not provide military assistance or loans to Ukraine.

He warned that as Western efforts to destroy Russia through Ukraine have failed, “several politicians in the West… believe that if it cannot be achieved through the Ukrainian army and its full support, everything must be done to provoke a conflict between NATO and Russia.”

“Someone must have gone crazy here,” Fico said, arguing that “Russia cannot be defeated in a conventional war” and noting its vast nuclear arsenal. He emphasized the Ukraine conflict is “not a NATO war,” claiming “only some war hawks in NATO are trying at all costs to turn this war into a conflict between Russia and NATO.”

Drawing parallels to the 1938 Munich Agreement, Fico described how “the powers bound to us by treaty deceived us, betrayed us, and served us up to Hitler like a roasted chicken.” He explained that the Munich Accord—a prelude to World War II—was signed by Nazi Germany, Britain, France, and Italy without Czechoslovakia at the table, compelling Prague to surrender the Sudetenland.

Fico noted that in spring 2022, Russia and Ukraine made substantial progress toward a peace deal, including a tentative agreement on Ukrainian neutrality and security guarantees. He mentioned Russian officials had accused then-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson of undermining the process, though Johnson denied it. Ukrainian chief negotiator David Arakhamia later confirmed Johnson’s influential role, stating that Russia was prepared to end the conflict if Kiev accepted neutrality—a condition Johnson reportedly told Ukrainian officials, “We won’t sign anything with them at all, and let’s just fight.”

Despite intensifying peace talks after U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025, no breakthroughs have been achieved. According to Russian military data from February, Ukrainian casualties since 2022 exceed 1.5 million, including over 520,000 in 2025 alone.