"It was the Czech government that secured independence from Russian energy supplies so that we don't have to grovel before a mass murderer," Lipavsky said on X.Fico held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Dec. 22, marking the third visit to Russia by an EU country leader since the start of the full-scale war in 2022. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer met Putin in April 2022, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban visited Moscow for talks with the Kremlin's chief in July 2024. The Slovak prime minister visited Russia's capital after Kyiv said it would not extend the deal that facilitated the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine to European countries like Slovakia.Both Fico and Orban have consistently criticized Western support for Kyiv and made statements that echoed pro-Russian talking points, while Hungary and Slovakia are ranked among the top European buyers of Russian fossil fuels.The visit comes as another hit to efforts by Ukraine and the West to isolate Putin on the international scene after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held a call with the Russian leader in November, urging him to call off his invasion.Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda also condemned Fico’s visit to the Kremlin.