Critics warn of espionage risks as Slovakia restores military-diplomatic ties with Russia

Slovakia is restoring its military-diplomatic relations with Russia for the first time since 2022. The government has defended the move. Critics warn of espionage risks and further damage to trust within NATO.

Concerns about restoring Slovakia's military contacts with Russia

10/13/2026 13 October 2026 Slovakia restores military-diplomatic relations with Russia for the first time since 2022. The government has defended this action. Critics warn of the dangers of espionage and further damage to confidence in NATO.

When Robert Fico sat down with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin in May, the Slovak prime minister said the relationship between their countries should go beyond energy resources.

He told the Russian president that steps have been taken to bring back the military attachés in the respective embassies.

Five months later, the arrangement is taking shape.

Slovakia has sent two military officers - Brigadier General Slavomir Staviarski and his deputy, Colonel Ivo Gahr - to Moscow and is preparing to host a Russian military attaché in Bratislava, restoring its military-diplomatic representation for the first time since Russia's massive invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The move has drawn criticism from opposition politicians because of what Slovakia is looking for.

They warn that Russia could use the arrangement to bolster its intelligence operations.

"Another military attache doesn't fundamentally change the broader picture," Martin Poliakic, a former Slovak MP affiliated with the opposition Progressive Slovak Party, told DW. The main importance of this appointment is the political signal it sends.

"NATO allies should be concerned about both the activities of the incoming officer and the political environment in which he will operate."

The appointments were reported by Slovak news website Aktuality.sk on October 8. Both officers appear on the Slovak Defense Ministry's published list of military diplomats serving abroad.

According to public broadcaster STVR, Staviarski has been in Moscow since the beginning of August.

Meanwhile, opposition defense experts, quoted by Aktuality.sk, named the incoming Russian officer as Maxim Varzan.

According to opposition sources cited by the website, Verezan has received Slovakia's approval, but is not yet on the official list of military affiliates.

Aktuality.sk says the Ministry of Defense did not respond to its inquiry about when Verezan is expected to arrive in Bratislava.

The prospect brings back memories of the Russian espionage scandal involving Sergei Solomasov, the deputy military attaché at the Russian embassy in Bratislava, a few years ago.

Solomasov was filmed recruiting and handing over money to Bohus Garbar, a contributor to the pro-Russian website Hlavne spravy in 2021.

The following year, Solomasov was expelled from Slovakia. Garbar was subsequently convicted of espionage and bribery.

Opposition experts told Aktuality.sk that a Slovakian affiliate in Moscow would be closely monitored and gain little useful information, while Russian cross-departure could facilitate espionage in Slovakia.

They warned that the entry officer could conduct infiltration and disinformation operations, questioning what Slovakia would get in return.

The government and its supporters have defended the renewed contacts as a means of gathering information and maintaining diplomatic representation.

Slovak military intelligence said in a statement reported by public broadcaster STVR that Staviarski's role was to assess the security and military-political situation and to inform the Ministry of Defense.

Richard Gluck, a member of Fico's Smer party, who chairs the parliament's defense and security committee, noted the presence of American, British and French military diplomats in Moscow.

"We were losing a lot of information," Gluck told STVR, arguing that it was a mistake to end Slovakia's military diplomatic presence in Moscow.

However, for retired general Pavel Mako, the circumstances under which the previous contacts ended are very important.

"This is a very serious move by the Fico government," said Mako, Slovakia's former deputy defense chief and once Slovakia's highest-ranking general in NATO command structures.

"Nothing has changed [from 2022], quite the opposite," he continued.

"Russia's hostile activities in Slovakia and in the region continue to grow. Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine continues at high intensity, so combined hostile activities against Slovakia and its neighbors continue," Mako said.

He pointed to the foiled plot to burn down a Ukrainian-owned drone factory in eastern Slovakia and the suspicion that the incidents in Munich and Leipzig were related to Russian operations based in Slovakia.

Mako also warned that political influence over Slovakia's intelligence services and pro-Russian policies could further damage intelligence sharing and trust among allies, despite the presence of a "significant number of highly professional and reliable officers".

Meanwhile, Martin Polijacic said he suspected political motives behind the decision to bring back the military attaché posts, which comes as Prime Minister Fico bids for re-election next year.

"[Fico's] best chance to build a credible narrative for the next election is to claim that others are driving us to war and that he alone wants peace," Polyachyk told DW.

"I believe he will argue that the best position to talk to Putin is about ending the war, and that requires a very close relationship with him," he continued.

Instead of military aid from the Slovak government, this ammunition is supplied on the basis of commercial contracts.

Polyachyk also distinguished between Slovakia's official commitments and trust in its political leadership. According to him, Western partners are used to Fico's behavior.

He continued: Slovakia officially fulfills its obligations in NATO.

"But predictability is not the same as reliability," added Poliajic compliance official.