an attempt on the prime minister of slovakia, robert fitz, was seriously injured after the government meeting. we collected everything. what is known, we will tell you in today's issue of bbc ukraine. i am olga polamaryuk. the small town of handlova is only 190 km from the capital of slovakia, bratislava. there was an off-site meeting of the cabinet of ministers there today, prime minister robert fitso was also at the meeting. and here are the shots: fico goes outside after the meeting, approaches local residents, when a man calls out to him from the crowd and shoots him. the local press reports on several shots, the prime minister pa'. on the ground

he is picked up by the guards, taken to the car, later he was taken by helicopter to the hospital in the city of banska bystrica, and according to reports, the prime minister suffered several wounds, allegedly in the stomach and arm, there is currently no official information about his condition, and the attacker did not flee the scene, he was caught by the police, his identity has not been officially disclosed, but the local press reports that he is a 71-year-old man who had a permit for weapons, and later... on fice's facebook page , a message appeared that the injuries were life-threatening, and the president zuzana chaputova of slovakia called the attempt on the prime minister an attack on democracy. i am shocked, we are all shocked , by the horrific and vicious attack on prime minister robert fitzgerald. something serious happened that we can't even fathom yet: a physical attack on the prime minister. it is primarily an attack on

a person, but it is also an attack on democracy. any violence is unacceptable. the rhetoric of hate we see in society leads to acts of hate. let's stop it. the police arrested the suspected criminal and will surely provide more information when possible. until then, please don't make hasty judgments and think about the most important thing, and that's the only thing at the moment, robert.

to shake his hand as did a man next to me and at that moment we heard what sounded like a firecracker, we thought someone was playing a joke and threw a firecracker on the ground, that was my first reaction, i heard three shots, it was very fast , one by one, it looks like if you throw a firecracker on the ground, i saw a scratch on the head, and then it fell by the barrier, it's like a terrible dream, i tell you, i can't seem to about'. this is simply impossible in slovakia. bbc correspondent bethany bell reports on the condition of robert fitze from bratislava. it is reported that fitz was shot several times in the stomach, arm, and leg. we are waiting for official information about his injury. as the doctors said, when fiso was brought to the hospital, he was conscious, but then he passed out. a message

from the government that phis's life is in danger. there is a sense of shock here in bratislava. one person told me that such things do not happen in this country. people are waiting for details of the investigation. we saw a video of the police arresting the man with a beard according to reports, he is 71 years old. this is believed to be a suspect, but we are awaiting confirmation. there is a general feeling of shock, how could this happen in... but the people i spoke to said that no one could have imagined that something like this could happen, there is a general, widespread condemnation, not only here in slovakia, but all over europe , and people here are waiting to find out how mr. fitzo is doing. yes, and according to the latest data, fitso has already managed to operate, so who is robert fitso, to him? 59 years old, last fall he

became the prime minister for the fourth time, fizo was most remembered for his statements not to give ukraine a single cartridge, and under the previous leadership, slovakia was one of the most active in the union. of ukraine, and the official called on kyiv to cede territory to russia in order to end the war, and also said that slovakia would oppose ukraine's accession to nato. well, the director of the central european strategist institute , dmytro tuzhanskyi, mr. dmytro, thank you for joining us, this is fico, the heavyweight of slovak politics, this is his fourth term, so what does this attempt mean for countries, what are the political implications? can it have well, look, it's really a shock, and frankly, i would advise you to refrain from these, you know, different hypotheses, because, and this is important to say, for slovaks now this is an incredible

test, this is the first time in my life, the first time in the modern history of slovakia , when there is such an attempt, in such a situation, against the country's leader. i.e., slovakia experienced various things, including mafia structures, and the 90s, and various such criminal things with political overtones, but such an attempt on the country's leader, well, that's for slovaks, well, it's not just new, it's really a shock, and this, as mrs. president, still acting president zuzana chaputova rightly said, it all happened in the conditions, in the conditions of a very electrified society, that is... yes, it is connected with the elections, i.e. the parliamentary elections were held last autumn and it divided the country, recently the presidential elections came, it incredibly divided the country, all this happened against the background of very, you know , radicalized rhetoric of those so-called

culture warriors, i.e. the society is incredibly polarized, incredibly charged, there are european elections, and so it happens, such a tragedy happens. yes, and again, this is a big test, and the test is, uh, there are several components at once, two key ones, how slovak politicians will react to this tragedy and whether they will dare to exploit it, yes, as of now all political camps have condemned uh this act, yes, but you know, it's one thing to do it instantly, another thing, how things will develop further, because unfortunately... we're watching, it's not only slovakia's problem, as politicians exploit any topic, russian aggression against ukraine, which was also immediately condemned by everyone, we see how it is exploited incredibly, cynically and simply terribly, so the second is how slovak

society will react, yes, because it is electrified again, it very divided, and it is very divided precisely on such very, you know, well, manipulative issues, like there, i don’t know, all the various conspiracy theories about the fact that someone there should seize the slovak language, someone should protect it, about the lgbt topic, neo-nazi various right movements very popular, anti-systemic movements are popular in slovakia, you know, when they are looking for neo-nazis there in ukraine, if in slovakia, unfortunately, this challenge exists, there is a party in the parliament, it has neo-nazi views and there are actually two such parties at once. there is the republic and the kotlebivites, they are actually quite frank, they even used the designation 148 in different, different ways, and so on, and this is also key, and you know this, if it further strengthens this test, slovakia historically has

a very pro-russian attitude, this is pro-slavic, this is slavophile, that is this narrative, which was sold in ukraine for a very long time about brotherly peoples, slovaks believe in it, they have... just like us , according to research so far, for many slovaks, russians are a brotherly people, a brotherly country, and here it goes opposition, and to add to that, and this is one of those grounds, slovakia and slovak society are very vulnerable to russian propaganda, and i can now see, follow in real time, how russian propaganda uses this tragedy, well, it's just terrible, one of the latest and such key ones in conspiracy theory that they say... said this yuraj, mr. yuraj, who shot, this writer, that he is active, or an activist of progressive slovakia, well, it is not so, there they refer to aktuality from sk, you will not find information on aktuality sk, it is on pity the ukrainian media, i will not name them now, so as not to engage in some kind of anti-advertisement there, but, well, such, well, i

can’t say respectable, but influential ukrainian media published this information, well , it’s terrible, this information is now being spread by warmongers so-called russian, including slovak language. that is, we all need to be very, very careful, and pass this test. yes, there is really a lot of information now, although there is no official information about the person who was the attacker, dmytro, stay with us. in fact, not only you talk about a polarized society, experts say that slovakia is actually very polarized now and an attempt on the prime minister could shake the society. and here is the opinion of the former adviser, deputy minister of foreign affairs of slovakia, milan nich. it's hard to say anything other than that it's not isolated incident, unfortunately. the political climate in slovakia has been very polarized over the years, i'm sorry to say. but it was coming. the prime minister was shot. this is terrible news. at the same time, there were other

politicians who received threats. in particular , the current president, chaputova. there have been investigations and arrests, but now the political class has to take it very seriously. robert fico is a dominant figure in slovak politics. he was prime minister four times. he won last year's parliamentary elections in september by a huge margin emotional, populist campaign. during which he tried to stir up emotions on any controversial issues. he played on the disappointment, frustrations of society, and as prime minister, he felt an obligation to be closer to the people. he held government meetings in small towns across the country, and this was one of them. handlova, where the attack took place, is a mining town in the center of the country. one of the bastions of support for fico's party. we have to wait for more information about the attacker and his motives. it is also very important how the political class will react, will this horrific attempt on life, which it surely

was, become something that adds fuel to the fire of polarization. as for political stability, until the prime minister can do his job, one of the deputy prime ministers will do it. there is a stable coalition with the parliamentary majority, we need to wait to see how the government, the opposition and the president, who will soon leave office, will react to this, and whether fizo... will be able to return to political life, he will be 60 years old in september, he had problems with health earlier, this is one of the turning points for the country that survived several horrific similar incidents in recent years, including the murder of investigative journalist jan kuciak in 2018, which shocked the country. yes, well, we return to the conversation with dmytro tuzhanskyi, how will these events affect the eu in general, in your opinion, because despite all the... speed, the leaders of the eu countries express their sympathy, concern, and

what's next? again, this is the same test that slovakia is facing, because in europe we are now entering the finish line of the european elections, the campaign for the elections to the european parliament, where rhetoric, you know, is nothing is inferior to the rhetoric that prevails in slovakia, there, well, it has been around for quite a long time, but let's say this, let's be active for the last two years, because... there were parliamentary, presidential campaigns, and, well, this is rhetoric that polarizes, electrifies society , so this is this, this is the key test, yes, this is the culture wars and this is this phrase, it is so popular, and this division there is a progressive agenda here is the agenda, and what they say is a conspiracy of liberals, a conspiracy of conservatives, well, not that i you know, i urge everyone more. tend to centrist politics or to pass some kind of moral, moral test, but in fact, this is

the moment of truth, yes, so, well, this, this, this is a challenge, and i would very much encourage all of our viewers, listeners, just, individually to draw their own conclusions based on actions and according to the words of one or another politician, if at this moment one or another politician dares to speculate, exploit, this tragedy, well, these politicians have a place in the political dustbin, yes, not there, i don't know, in the european parliament or in any other government offices, because it 's, you know, a matter of life and death in fact, this is what is happening in ukraine, this is at stake, what some have begun to forget and have begun to exploit, unfortunately, yes, dmytro, thank you, director of the institute of central european strategy, dmytro tuzhanskyi was in touch with us , well, we see that the parliament... of slovakia will strengthen security measures after the assassination attempt on fitzgerald. well, that's all for today, we'll see you tomorrow at

9 p.m. good bye. congratulations, friends, live on the espresso tv channel. the second part of the verdict program. my name is serhiy rudenko. today we will talk about this. nova navala sing. night, the russian offensive in kharkiv oblast and the prospects for the deployment of hostilities in sumy oblast, the reality and communication of the ukrainian government with society. serious talk about global stability. putin again spoke about peace talks with ukraine. what security guarantees does the kremlin dictator want. they do not see prospects. half of ukrainian refugees are not ready to return home from europe. should eu countries facilitate the return of conscripts. friends, we

are working live on the espresso tv channel, and. on our youtube and facebook platforms, for those who are currently watching us live there, please subscribe to our pages, like this video, and also take our survey, today we ask you if countries have the european union to return conscripts to ukraine, yes no, everything is quite simple on youtube, either yes or no, if you have any other opinion, please write in the comments under this video, if you are watching us on tv, bring a smartphone or phone and vote if you think: that the countries of the european union should return conscripted men to ukraine, 0800 211 381, no 0800 211382, all calls to these numbers are free, vote, at the end of the program we will sum up the results of this vote. we should have two political experts on the air, they are viktor bobarenko

and volodymyr osenko, we are waiting for their inclusion on the air. in the meantime, i will say that the day before polish defense minister władysław kosiniak kamys said that warsaw can help ukraine with the issue of return conscripts, discussions on this topic are also being conducted in other european countries, so far there is no final decision at the level of the eu countries, because it is clear that the majority of men, or part of men conscripts from ukraine, came to... europe in the status of refugees , and here the question is in what way the countries of the european union will help the ukrainian authorities to return conscripted men. the day before , germany said that they would not do this, even though the men, who are abroad, will not receive consular services, as it was

already decided before the introduction of the law on... mobilization before its implementation until may 18. for almost three weeks now, the ban on issuing or providing consular services to men who are military servicemen abroad. germany said that if the ukrainians cannot renew their documents in the checkpoints located outside of ukraine, they will provide ukraine, ukrainians will be provided with documents for... so that they could live and work in europe, and we already have our guests on the phone, this is viktor boberenko, an expert of the bureau of policy analysis, mr. viktor, i congratulate you, thank you for being with us today, good health to you, and volodymyr fesenko, political scientist, chairman of the board of the penta applied political research center. i congratulate you, mr. volodymyr,

good evening, i congratulate you, good evening. thank you, gentlemen, for being with us today as we ask our viewers and viewers. about whether, in their opinion , the countries of the european union should return conscripts to ukraine, i will ask what do you think about this, because the discussion continues, and obviously this discussion will continue even after may 18, when the law that changes the procedure for the mobilization and registration of conscripts will not be in force, what do you think about whether the countries of the european union have go to a meeting with ukraine and give or return the military. bound, or in what way this issue should be resolved, let's start with mr. viktor, they are not obliged to return our citizens to us, this is the first, second, precisely the european tradition, this, if there is, well, let it appear to someone pacifist, you don't want to fight, why

don't we force you to fight, and they have no legal grounds, and there are no ethical grounds either, so all the efforts of our government to do something here, it's simple, it's such a bluff in front of its own, thank you , mr. volodymyr, well , this is not a bluff, this is the norm of the law, the norm of the law should be the same, otherwise we talk a lot, the orange revolution, the law should be the same for everyone, the revolution of dignity, the law should be the same for everyone. and for some reason we now forget during a war, such a war, as now, for the survival of the country, and for some reason we forget that the law should be the same for everyone, for those who are in ukraine, it should... work for those who are abroad, it should not work, and why? i agree with the fact that there are no mechanisms for the return of those who

are abroad, conscripts, so there are no such intentions, where there are intentions to return them. the intentions are only simple, so that people who are conscripts, who find themselves abroad, at different times, under different circumstances, some illegally, some quite legally. simply they have to enter the military register, or renew themselves on the military register, that 's all, no requirements, no, let's say, mechanisms, tools, returning ukrainians, men who ended up abroad, to ukraine, mobilizing them, there is nothing like that , there is only a simple norm for them to be registered in the military, that's all, here gentlemen, the question is how it will affect the... intentions, further intentions of ukrainians who are now living abroad, it is clear that not all of them fled through the yew tree, or not everyone bought it a ticket in the border service for that, or in

a volunteer organization, and they left through the system, not everyone was ticketed there, obviously there are people who had the right to leave there, it is clear that the rule of law works for everyone, from may 18 everyone must enter military registration, those who were not registered, and those who are registered... update their data in the tcc or in the electronic cabinet or in the tsnap, but there are already statistics from the results of the kmis survey, sociology, only half of the ukrainian refugees who are now live in germany of poland and the czech republic, ready to return to ukraine. the main conditions for their return are security, the normal functioning of critical infrastructure, the availability of housing and work, as well as the end of a full-scale ... invasion of the russian federation. in what way, gentlemen, in your opinion, can the ukrainian state convince

those who are abroad, and there is a sufficiently large number of ukrainians there, up to seven, it seems, millions, to return to ukraine, because it is clear that the situation in ukraine, now a difficult but obvious victory will be behind us. the only question is when and what words should be said now to those ukrainians who are abroad in order for them to perceive ukraine as the state and citizens they are, and somehow associate their future with the ukrainian state, mr. viktor, i think that here the main method is the sincerity of the authorities in the dialogue and not only the posts on sending that there, like, look... there, and actually trying to do something so that people believe, but i think that already

in the process of this dialogue, the authorities and society, the authorities have gone so far in their incompetence and unwillingness to communicate that hardly anyone will believe, even after there were barbecues and people shouted: there is no need to panic, now... on the contrary, in sumy oblast and kharkiv oblast , there is an excess of panic, perhaps with on the part of the government, well, there is no dialogue, and the first is just simple sincerity, yes, the second is, well, as there is such a concept in preferential treatment, we lay down , lie down, yes, this is when we cover up all the laws, what do you see? when you come back, you'll be waiting for this, this, this, if you don't like it, we can fix it. for example, in the same lithuania , young people who return are given the opportunity to

start their own business without an interest-free loan, or it could be programs of the mzhk youth housing loan or the possibility of free admission, well, the state is not here can guarantee that there is an external examination, but it means some kind of... transparent class admission, which is almost guaranteed for intelligent children to enter higher education institutions here, i.e. that says: we, we are sincere and frank with you, come back, second, you are waiting for the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, thank you, mr. volodymyr, please, and may i ask a counter question to mr. viktor, that's all he said , for whom all this should be guaranteed first of all, for those who are now fighting for ukraine? risk their lives at the front and for their families, the children of these people who are fighting at the front, or for those who are abroad, but for

whom in the first place? here, here, here again , you are right when you say that the law should be the same for everyone, no, i don't, and here i don't agree, but i disagree here, and not only about rights, veterans should have benefits, their children should have benefits, there for rehabilitation, for treatment, there for what norms we have there, there for receiving there. 2 hectares outside the city limits or 10 acres within the limits of a big city, yes, veterans should have their veteran benefits, but we have to lure our citizens with something, too, no need to lure, no need to lure, when you lure, then we rather, let's attract not those who fled the country and do not want to be in this country, but those who want to work for

a territory in which... there are interesting opportunities for development, for business and so on, i don't want to be hypocritical, but let's assess the situation realistically as it is, those who left after february 24, 22, they fled since the war, two-thirds, if not more, of those who left are women and children, and here there must be only one policy, there are people who left before... year and again, let's be honest, they left from 91- in the 1990s, they left, the migration was huge, and most of the people who left then did not return and are not going to to return to ukraine, they left in the 2000s, they left, both to western european countries and to russia, guest workers, labor migrants, many people

worked temporarily, many returned to ukraine, those who did not find themselves there, now there is a war , the main factor, if the war ends, those who want to return will return, and it is not a question of benefits, the point is that, first of all, the main condition, this study that was quoted, it shows just that: the war, in the first place turn, the main reason is the war, the end. war, there will be no risks, no security problems, then people will start to return, and those who left, there is still the question of where to return to, eh, will there be housing, or will there be work, it is not about businesses, a smaller part of people can do business , this has been researched for a long time, yes, the main thing here is to have somewhere to return, to have housing, to... have work, and then

some people will return, some will not return, and this has already been verified by practice even in peaceful, peacetime up to the current full-scale war, so let's not fantasize here, let's not invent some, you know, not to paint potemkin villages and so on, but now we are talking about a moral, here it was said about ethics, a moral choice, yes, if a person did not want to defend his state now. i have big questions, yes, but now our sociologists are already recording a split in society, not as a result of the actions of the authorities, i understand your logic, the authorities are to blame for everything, so the authorities in our country were different for 30 years and let’s all say so, the period under different presidents and governments, people left, even when there was no war, so the issue is not in the power, the issue in because where do you want to live, how should you

develop, in which country? do you want to realize yourself in your country or in a foreign country, as a state, but i agree about the state, after the war, because now the situation is different, i will tell you now, the question is not in words to those there who have to return, those words and mechanisms, communication will have to be sought when the war ends, or when it is clear that it is ending, and then we will have to deal with the solution of this problem, and today, unfortunately, the question stands on... the country, the state, and us in this state must survive , first of all, not those who are currently abroad. thank you, mr. volodymyr, mr. viktor, well, it is clear that in this situation, well , you cannot simply wait for the end of the war, not to communicate with the part of society that is abroad, the question of what, about what and how, well, no, listen, here is the communication i hear, first of all, come on, germany...