BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia's parliament on Wednesday passed legislation that critics say will be detrimental for many nongovernmental organizations.
It was drafted by coalition lawmakers and approved by the government of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, who has frequently attacked NGOs.
The organizers of a protest rally this month in Bratislava against the legislation claim the draft bill looked inspired by Russian law, which they said “makes it possible to liquidate the civil sector and turn into a criminal anyone who is not loyal to those in power.” The government has said the law is meant to the financing and functioning of civic groups more transparent.
Lawmakers loyal to Fico made last-minute concessions removing some controversial parts of the draft, including the provision that NGOs would be considered lobbyists without giving a clear definition of what lobbying is.
An analysis by Via Iuris, a nonprofit organization, said the law violates the constitution, including the right to privacy, freedom of expression and the right to freely associate, as well as European Union rules. Its aim is to “stigmatize and limit the activities of civic groups," according to the analysis.
Fico, who is a divisive figure at home and abroad, returned to power in 2003 after his leftist Smer (Direction) party won a parliamentary election on a pro-Russia and anti-American platform.
His government moved to overhaul public broadcasting to give the government control of public television and radio. That, along with an amendment to the penal code to eliminate a special anti-graft prosecutor, showed that Fico was leading Slovakia down a more autocratic path, following the direction of Hungary under populist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
The government has faced vocal protests against its pro-Russian and other policies.
People march during a protest to condemn a draft legislation that critics consider ”liquidating” for many non-government organisations in Bratislava Thursday, April 3, 2025. (Jaroslav Novák/TASR via AP)
FILE - Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Feb. 21, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet Tuesday ahead of Sen. Lindsey Graham's funeral, their second sit-down this month and after a far-right activist with the U.S. president’s ear had a widely publicized change of heart on Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Trump is set to welcome Zelenskyy to the White House as the Ukrainian leader travels to Washington to honor Graham, whose final act as a public official was visiting Kyiv and securing an agreement on a package of sanctions that seek to punish countries that purchase Russian oil, gas and other exports.
Zelenskyy posted on X early Tuesday that he had arrived in the U.S. and listed the goals for his visit.
“Our schedule includes meetings with President Trump, his team, and those who can support our defense," the Ukrainian leader said. "Our number one priority is anti-ballistic defense and strategic cooperation with America. Peace needs to be brought closer.”
In a Fox News Channel interview on Tuesday, Trump recalled Graham's hawkishness and said the Republican South Carolina senator's support for Ukraine never wavered. Trump said Graham had suggested it was time to make a deal with Iran but no similar suggestion for the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Ukraine he's very militant about,” Trump said on “Fox & Friends." "I mean, Lindsey liked war, to be honest with you."
Zelenskyy is now being bolstered by an unusual source: Laura Loomer, known primarily for her incendiary social media posts and her influence with the Republican U.S. president. Traveling through Ukraine, Loomer has witnessed Moscow’s barrage firsthand and interviewed Zelenskyy while admitting she was “bamboozled by Russian propaganda.”
Loomer said she spoke to Trump after she met with Zelenskyy in Ukraine last week and she expects to meet with the U.S. president once she returns from her trip.
“It’s looking good for Ukraine, right?” Loomer said during an interview with The Associated Press. “Going into this meeting next week at the Oval Office is looking pretty good.”
Ahead of the meeting, Zelenskyy has also warned that Russia has been aiding Iran as the war persists by capturing satellite imagery of U.S. bases in the Gulf region that later appear in Iran. The Ukrainian president also asserted that there was a “clear correlation” between Russia’s images and subsequent Iranian strikes.
“The purpose is clear,” Zelenskyy said earlier this month. “None of us in the world should turn a blind eye to one very simple fact: Evil always seeks ways to make things worse and spread further.”
On Monday, Trump downplayed any impact of potential Russian assistance for Iran.
“I don’t think they’ve been doing it, certainly not at a high level,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he traveled to Michigan. “And if they have, it has been very un-impactful.”
Still, he said he would raise the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Zelenskyy has a busy itinerary during his latest visit to Washington. Besides his White House meeting, Zelenskyy will head to the Capitol to meet with senators on Tuesday evening after Graham’s funeral at Washington National Cathedral, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Republican leadership is hoping to advance Graham’s sanctions legislation this week, although the Senate is juggling several other priorities before lawmakers leave Washington for their August recess.
The bill has dozens of backers from both major political parties and is seen as the main policy tribute to Graham, who died unexpectedly this month from a tear in his aorta. It imposes tariffs on goods from the world’s top five purchasers of Russia oil or natural gas, including China and India.
The legislation also includes sanctions against Putin; senior Russian political and military leaders; and Russian financial institutions and energy projects.
Trump met with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit earlier this month in Ankara, Turkey, and announced that the U.S. will give Ukraine a license to make Patriot air defense systems, a long-running request from Kyiv to counter Russian missile attacks.
The air defense systems are expensive to make and are in high demand. Noting that he and Zelenskyy have “actually developed a good relationship,” Trump said that the U.S. will help Ukraine produce the Patriots and that the country would be able to produce them “pretty quickly.”
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Laura Loomer, right, interviews Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Thursday July 23, 2026, in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
FILE - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy looks od during his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
