Russia condemns attack on Slovak prime minister, offers condolences over 'great tragedy'

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Thursday condemned attack on Slovak Prime Minister Roberto Fico, who was critically injured after being shot multiple times on Wednesday.

"We condemn this attack in the strongest terms and consider it absolutely unacceptable. This is a great tragedy. We hope that Mr. Fico will be able to pull through and recover as soon as possible. We wish him a speedy recovery," Peskovsaid in an interview with Russian newspaper Izvestia.

The spokesman said Moscow had not received any requests for assistance in investigation from Slovakia.

"We have heard the statements of the Slovak side that this [crime] has political motives, this is attempted murder of one of the members of the country's political leadership. We fully condemn it," he said.

The assassination attempt occurred on Wednesday after a government meeting in the central Slovak town of Handlova, and a suspect was detained.​​​​​​​