Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has escalated unfounded claims of an attempted coup, accusing NGOs, opposition figures, and foreign actors of plotting to overthrow his government—yet no credible evidence has been presented. His allegations surfaced just days before a no-confidence vote, raising suspicions of political manipulation, and despite warnings of an imminent threat, authorities waited twelve days before taking any action. This coordinated campaign, driven by the highest levels of Slovakia’s security apparatus—including the police, intelligence agencies, and the prime minister himself—bears the hallmarks of a psychological operation reminiscent of Kremlin disinformation tactics, aimed at sowing fear and discrediting dissent. The government has since banned Georgian Legion leader Mamuka Mamulašvili from the Schengen zone, detained an unnamed Ukrainian national for expulsion, and announced further travel bans and security measures, yet failed to provide any justification. The only “proof” consists of two unrelated photographs and an AI-generated email discussing hypothetical peaceful protests, which its author has dismissed as a misunderstanding—yet Fico continues to cite it as evidence.
Authorities have also linked the alleged coup to cyberattacks and bomb threats, but have ignored Czech intelligence reports pointing to Russian involvement. Meanwhile, the Financial Administration has launched vague accusations of NGO financial misconduct, reinforcing concerns that civil society is being deliberately targeted. Despite Fico’s dramatic claims, no emergency measures have been enacted, police have confirmed no criminal investigations, and protests have continued freely, with tens of thousands rejecting the government’s narrative as a fabrication. Even within his own coalition, SNS MP Roman Michelko has dismissed the SIS report as insignificant.
Prime Minister Robert Fico continues to claim that Slovakia faces an attempted coup, yet his government has failed to provide any concrete evidence. His accusations initially targeted domestic protest organisers but have now expanded to implicate the Georgian Legion, a military unit fighting against Russian forces in Ukraine. Despite the gravity of these claims, the alleged links between opposition protests and foreign actors remain unsubstantiated, prompting criticism from both civil society and international observers.
The timing of these allegations has raised further suspicions. Fico first introduced the coup claims three days before a parliamentary session where he faced a no-confidence vote. The government responded by making the session classified, citing an intelligence report from the Slovak Information Service (SIS). Despite the urgency implied by Fico’s accusations, no immediate action followed—for twelve days, authorities made no further statements or arrests related to the supposed coup plot.
Fico’s accusations against the protest movement, Mier Ukrajine (Peace to Ukraine), rest on claims that the group financed the Georgian Legion with €150,000 to support an overthrow of the Slovak government. The organisation firmly denies these allegations, stating that the only fundraising it participated in was the Czech-led initiative Munícia pre Ukrajinu (Ammunition for Ukraine), which collected €4.7 million for Ukrainian defence purposes. No funds, they insist, were sent to the Georgian Legion. Fico has not presented any proof to the contrary, nor has he clarified how this alleged financial connection would relate to a coup attempt in Slovakia.
A Coup Without a Plot? Fico’s Crackdown on Thin Air
Despite a lack of verifiable evidence, the government has taken measures that suggest an attempt to validate its own narrative. The leader of the Georgian Legion, Mamuka Mamulašvili, has been placed on a Schengen travel ban, alongside ten unnamed individuals. Additionally, an unnamed Ukrainian national has been detained and is facing expulsion from Slovakia, yet no official explanation has been given regarding his role in the supposed coup. The Minister of the Interior, Matúš Šutaj Eštok, vaguely referred to “links to organised crime” and “financial irregularities” but offered no further details. Furthermore, authorities announced plans to add four more individuals to a travel ban list and stated that five additional persons were under “operational measures”, though their identities and alleged offences remain undisclosed.
A key figure in the unfolding accusations is Pavol Gašpar, head of the Slovak Information Service (SIS), who has been actively reinforcing the government’s claims. According to him, SIS has allegedly uncovered “personnel and financial ties” between Slovak NGOs, the opposition, and the Georgian Legion. However, no specific evidence has been disclosed. The only “proof” presented by Fico at a press conference were two photographs: one showing Mamulašvili at a public event in 2023 with Lucia Štasselová, an activist from Mier Ukrajine, and another of a group delivering humanitarian aid to Ukraine, which included journalist Martin M. Šimečka. Neither image substantiates any connection to an alleged coup attempt.
The government has also linked the alleged coup plot to recent cyberattacks on Slovakia’s land registry and health insurance system, as well as bomb threats against schools. However, authorities have not provided any details on how these incidents relate to the protests or to foreign actors. Czech officials, meanwhile, have identified Russian sources as a potential origin of the bomb threats, yet the Slovak government has ignored these findings.
Beyond allegations of foreign involvement, the government has intensified efforts to scrutinise NGO finances. The head of the Financial Administration, Jozef Kiss, has suggested that non-profit organisations operate within a “grey zone”, where up to 90% of their expenditures fall under a vaguely defined “miscellaneous” category. He implied that such funding structures could indicate financial misconduct, though no specific organisation was named, and no clear evidence of wrongdoing was presented. The Ministry of Finance, SIS, and police have since formed a joint investigative task force to examine alleged subsidy fraud linked to NGOs.
The government’s attempts to link the protests to a coup plot have also relied on dubious digital evidence. Authorities cited an AI-generated email discussing a theoretical “peaceful occupation of government buildings” as further proof of a planned overthrow. However, the email’s real author—an activist from Banská Bystrica—admitted it was merely a hypothetical discussion piece, created by artificial intelligence. Despite this, Fico dismissed the explanation and continued using the email to reinforce his claims.
Fico has also elaborated on how he believes the coup was meant to unfold. According to him, foreign actors and protest organisers planned to incite violence during demonstrations, leading to an escalation that would provoke security forces into using force. He claims that global media would then depict Slovakia as a repressive state, sparking calls for emergency elections outside the legal framework. This narrative, however, is based entirely on speculation, with no tangible evidence provided to support it.
While Fico has placed much of the blame on the Georgian Legion, he has now attempted to connect Ukraine’s military counterintelligence agency to the alleged plot, implying that Ukrainian security services played an active role in destabilising Slovakia. No evidence has been presented to validate this claim.
Fearmongering Backfires: Mass Protests and Political Divisions
Public reaction to the government’s accusations has not unfolded as Fico might have expected. Rather than intimidating demonstrators, his claims have coincided with mass protests, where tens of thousands of Slovaks have taken to the streets, rejecting his allegations as politically motivated fabrications. The opposition, too, has largely dismissed the government’s narrative, though internal divisions have emerged over how to respond. While some opposition leaders initially sought a meeting with President Peter Pellegrini to discuss Slovakia’s foreign policy, they later declined to attend, suspecting it to be a political manoeuvre meant to legitimise Fico’s claims.
Despite repeated warnings of a serious coup threat, no emergency measures have been enacted. Protests have continued freely, and the police anti-organised crime unit has confirmed that no criminal investigations related to the alleged coup are underway. Although SIS has insisted that it is monitoring the situation, its findings remain unverified and undisclosed to the public.
Meanwhile, divisions have emerged even within the governing coalition. While Fico, Matúš Šutaj Eštok, and other Smer and Hlas officials continue to push the coup narrative, some coalition politicians appear less convinced. Roman Michelko, an MP from the SNS (a coalition partner), has stated that the SIS report contained “nothing significant”.
The broader implications of the government’s actions remain a concern. Even if the coup narrative lacks credibility, its impact extends beyond Slovakia’s domestic politics. The repeated accusations and the criminalisation of civil society actors risk undermining the country’s reputation among its Western allies. Slovakia’s reliability as an EU and NATO partner has already been questioned, and these developments further reinforce the perception that the government is moving away from democratic norms.
While Fico and his allies continue to assert that they have prevented a coup, the absence of any substantive proof raises doubts about the true motivations behind these allegations. Whether the government is seeking to distract from economic difficulties, discredit the opposition, or justify crackdowns on civil society, the strategy appears to be one of prolonging uncertainty—keeping the public focused on a fabricated threat rather than the pressing issues facing Slovakia.
Sources:
Peter Kováč, Michal Katuška | SME
Lucia Osvaldová | Denník N