In the last two weeks, mass protests have been taking place in Bratislava and throughout Slovakia against the government. What are people unhappy about?
The dissatisfaction with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico began with his return to power in 2023. But today the problems of the prime minister, who is trying to rule with an iron fist, are growing exponentially - both inside the country and in the field of foreign policy.
PES to expel Fico's party
The Slovak prime minister's close relations with Russia and China continue to generate tension and discontent. Europeans were angered by Fico's meetings with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in early September, as well as his refusal to stop buying Russian energy and his insistence on changing the constitution to give Slovak law precedence over EU law.
All of this, along with the authoritarian crackdown on the media and the non-governmental sector, has apparently convinced the Party of European Socialists to permanently expel Fico's "Smer" from its faction.
Michal Simečka, leader of the opposition liberal "Progressive Slovakia", told DW that this decision, which the PES is expected to officially adopt in mid-October, "deals a serious blow to Fico's reputation".
Slovaks are against austerity
At the same time, the deep political polarization in Slovakia itself is preoccupying people more than foreign policy issues. The latest opposition demonstrations are being held under the banner "Protest against impoverishment!" and are aimed at the government's economic policy. They are in response to the new package of measures announced by the ruling party - the third set of austerity measures since they came to power.
The package, which was approved by the Slovak parliament on Wednesday night, is an attempt to contain the country's economic crisis, which has been exacerbated by US tariffs on Slovakia's key auto industry.
The goal is to reduce the budget deficit by 2.7 billion euros by 2026. While no one disputes the need for action, the emphasis on increasing taxes and fees, cutting public sector salaries and jobs, and reducing social benefits is causing anger. Critics say the package will hit ordinary citizens but spare oligarchs linked to Fico's "Smer" party. Business organizations in the country complain that competitiveness will weaken.
Will the government fall?
The new protests are likely to intensify the instability that the ruling coalition has been experiencing for the past two years.
After the government lost its majority earlier this year, Fico regained the loyalty of the MPs who left with ministerial posts. The vote on the new measures will once again test the stability of this majority.
The situation currently gives the opposition a chance, but the fall of the government is in question. According to Simechka, "now the representatives of each party are publicly arguing about the package" of measures, but the junior coalition partners of "Smer" - the center-left "Hlas" party and the radical right-wing Slovak National Party - are afraid to rock the boat, having seen their support decline after the last election.
Voters, however, have not forgotten the rule of the liberal parties, which also led to chaos. Simecka says his team is touring the regions and talking to disappointed people who voted for Fico's coalition, but experts say many of those voters, who are from the poorer part of the population, would rather support the far-right "Republic" than the liberals.
Slovakia is not the same as it was in 1989
Aware of this threat, the liberal opposition is trying to tie Fico's pro-Russian stance to the controversy over the economic package.
Perhaps the most controversial part of it is the proposal to abolish two national holidays, one of which is November 17 - the day that commemorates the uprising that began the collapse of the communist regime in the former Czechoslovakia.
Some opposition parties have called for a general strike on that day, as happened 36 years ago. Others, however, fear failure.
Radoslav Stefančík of the University of Economics in Bratislava notes that the mood in the country today is very different from that of 1989: "Back then, the majority wanted democracy, political freedoms and a market economy," he says. "Now the country is polarized and many people would not join the protest."
Simečka suggests that his party will remain patient and insists that it is "ready to face Mr. Fico in the upcoming elections, whether they are held in two years or tomorrow".
Observers believe that early elections are unlikely, with the next one scheduled for 2027. Fico has already given up power once, in 2018, after the murder of journalist Jan Kuciak, which caused him problems with the judiciary. He is unlikely to repeat the move, according to forecasts.