S&D Group president Gianni Pittella and vice-president Tanja Fajon have criticised the decision of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to take the agreement on the relocation of refugees within Europe to court. Mr Pittella has also requested that the Party of European Socialists (PES) raise the issue at their next leaders' meeting.
S&D president Gianni Pittella & vice-president Tanja Fajon said in a joint statement:
"We took note of the decision of Mr Fico to bring the relocation decision to court. We are deeply disappointed by this decision and also condemn the recent statements by Mr Fico regarding the refugee crisis, in which he equated refugees and terrorists. These statements merely pander to people's worst fears and do nothing to help resolve the situation.
"We have sent a letter to the president of the Party of European Socialists (PES) Sergei Stanishev to ensure that Mr Fico's actions are on the agenda of the next PES leaders' meeting. We will decide on what further action to take based on those discussions."
