The no-confidence vote, if it succeeds, will trigger a snap election. According to a recent January poll, the liberal opposition Progressive Slovakia is the most popular party in the country on 23.9 percent support, with Fico’s ruling Smer in second on 18 percent.

Russian forces attacked Kryvyi Rih with ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, Russia signed a strategic partnership agreement with Iran. Read more about what happened on Friday, January 17. Russia strikes Kryvyi Rih with ballistic missiles: Killed and injured reported On January 17,

Thousands of protesters in the Slovak capital held banners and chanted slogans on Friday accusing Prime Minister Robert Fico of dragging the country towards Russia after he met President Vladimir Putin last month amid a gas dispute with Ukraine.

Nearly 89,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine, according to a joint investigation by BBC Russia and Mediazona, an increase of 3,965 killed since mid-December. It is thought the actual death toll is much higher as the numbers of deceased Russian troops include only those who could be immediately verified.

Criticism hasn’t been limited to Fico’s Moscow outreach. He also came under fire from the Slovak press and the opposition recently for spending time in a luxury hotel in Vietnam, where a single night’s stay costs more than €5,000, at a time when Slovak citizens face health-care and cost-of-living crises.

Slovakia's opposition parties will call a no-confidence vote against the government, a party chief said on Tuesday, accusing Prime Minister Robert Fico of dragging foreign policy closer to Russia while failing to tackle problems at home.

Thousands of Slovaks have taken to the streets as protests against the pro-Russia policies of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico spread from Slovakia's capital to towns and cities across the country and abroad.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico looks set to survive an upcoming no-confidence vote after rebel lawmakers in one ruling coalition party said they would not support the motion. Read more at straitstimes.

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, speaks to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2016. (AP Photo/Alexander ...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to visit Ukraine's capital Kyiv this Friday, responding to his offer of talks to try to resolve a spat over the end of Russian gas deliveries.

A delegation of Slovakia's far-right MPs, led by Deputy Speaker and leader of the nationalist party SNS Andrej Danko, is set to travel to Russia in January to "develop dialogue" following the visit by Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.

Russian President Vladimir Putin promised Slovakia that Russia's Gazprom would find alternative ways to deliver contracted gas to Slovakia after the end of transit through Ukraine, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Friday.