Fico has banned the entry of the commander of the Georgian Legion into Slovakia, citing alleged preparations for a coup.

Slovakia has banned the entry of Mamuka Mamulashvili, the commander of the Georgian Legion, following allegations from Robert Fico's government that his unit is linked to a purported coup plot, as reported by Denník N on January 31.

The volunteer Georgian Legion, which has been fighting in Ukraine since 2014, was established by Mamulashvili to combat Russian forces.

Slovak Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj-Šuťak stated that there are a total of 10 individuals on the list of those banned from entering Slovakia.

At a press conference, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico did not explain how Mamulashvili could have organized protests in Slovakia or been behind an alleged coup conspiracy.

Fico cited a photograph of Mamulashvili with Lucia Štasselova from the "Peace for Ukraine" initiative and opposition leader Michal Šimečka, who supported the Georgian Legion, as evidence of his claims.

The Georgian Legion dismissed the Slovak government's accusations as "absurd and unfounded."

A similar accusation previously emerged in Georgia, where the State Security Service claimed that the Georgian Legion, former bodyguards of ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili, and Georgiy Lortkipanidze, deputy head of Ukraine's military intelligence, were involved in a conspiracy against the ruling pro-Russian party, "Georgian Dream."

"These statements are nothing more than a deliberate attempt to discredit our unit, which has been fighting alongside Ukraine since 2014 in its struggle against Russian aggression. This is not the first time we have become a target of politically motivated disinformation. The Georgian government, acting under the influence of Russia, has previously attempted to concoct similar fabrications, accusing the Georgian Legion of plotting a coup or falsely claiming that we are returning to Georgia to participate in protests. These allegations were completely baseless and aimed at undermining those who oppose Russian imperialism. Now, the Slovak authorities have decided to follow the same Russian playbook, recycling the same lies to serve their own political agendas. This tactic is well known and has been repeatedly employed by the Kremlin to discredit those resisting its influence. The Georgian Legion has one mission: to defend Ukraine from Russian aggression," – stated Mamulashvili.

Recall that on the eve, news emerged that the Slovak police detained a Ukrainian citizen on January 30, suspected of preparing a coup in the country.

Currently, anti-government demonstrations under the slogan "Slovakia is Europe" are taking place across the country, spanning 30 cities, with around 100,000 people taking to the streets with slogans like "Enough Fico" and "We are Europe" in opposition to his pro-Russian policies.