Italy deals air-defence blow to NATO ally's pro-Putin leader

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico—one of the European Union-NATO leaders often considered sympathetic to Russian President Vladimir Putin—was left furious this weekend by an Italian decision to withdraw an air-defence system from the central European nation.

Accusing Slovakian President Zuzana Čaputová of "servility to foreign interests," Fico posted to Facebook railing against the Italian decision to remove the SAMP/T platform, according to Newsweek.

He said it would leave Bratislava unable to "protect our nuclear power plants and other strategic goals." The system is being withdrawn because it is needed elsewhere, Fico wrote.

The French-made SAMP/T system was deployed to Slovakia in March 2023, and NATO announced the system was operational as of the following month. The platform—intended to protect strategic sites against missiles and drones—was sent to Slovakia after Bratislava donated its Soviet-designed S-300 air defence system to Ukraine. A US Patriot system was briefly deployed there between the departure of the S-300 and the arrival of the SAMP/T.

An Italian Defence Ministry spokesperson told Newsweek that the 12-month SAMP/T deployment was scheduled to end next month and was intended as a temporary measure "of a defensive nature" to "ensure deterrence against potential threats."

Newsweek has contacted the Slovakian government office and Defense Ministry by email to request comment.

The SAMP/T can engage targets out to a range of around 65 miles and at an altitude of some 15 miles. The platform can intercept ballistic missiles at a distance of up to around 22 miles and at an altitude of around 15 miles. A French-Italian system sent to Ukraine has been in action since 2023. Last month, Rome ordered four more of the platforms.

The Italian decision to withdraw its SAMP/T leaves Bratislava—which also transferred all 13 of its Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine—facing a gap in its defensive umbrella. Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák has said the country was in a "a precarious situation without any air-defence systems or military aviation."

Kaliňák said in January that Slovakia is in discussions with the US to acquire a Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system, but it is unclear when any hypothetical agreement may come to fruition. Bratislava is seeking a significant discount on the deal, hoping to repurpose a discount previously offered by the US for the purchase of 12 Bell AH-1Z Viper helicopters.

Slovakia is also in a precarious diplomatic position following the return of its populist left-wing prime minister in September 2023. Fico ran with clear opposition to arming Ukraine, and—like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán across the shared southern border—in favour of an immediate ceasefire that would leave Moscow controlling swaths of Ukraine.

All Slovakian arms transfers to Ukraine took place under the preceding government. Fico ended Bratislava's active military support for Kyiv when he came to office in October, much to the chagrin of EU and NATO allies.

In his criticism of the Italian withdrawal posted to Facebook, Fico repeated his assertion that "the strategy of the West to use the war in Ukraine to weaken Russia economically, military and politically does not work."

Fico also criticized former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his alleged role in dissuading Kyiv from peace talks in 2022, reports of which Johnson has previously dismissed as "nonsense" and "Russian propaganda."