Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) dismissed claims by Slovak officials that HUR had orchestrated an attempted coup in Bratislava using members of the volunteer-based Georgian Legion.
"The Defense Intelligence of Ukraine officially reports that there is no unit called the Georgian National Legion in its structure," the agency said in a statement on Feb. 1.
The statement comes after Slovakia banned Georgian Legion commander Mamuka Mamulashvili from entering the country amid allegations that his unit was connected to a coup plot.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico claimed on Jan. 31 Mamulashvili helped organize mass protests in Slovakia on behalf of Ukraine as part of a hybrid operation against his government. He did not explain how Mamulashvili organized the demonstrations or plotted a coup but said the commander was "subordinate" to HUR.
Fico also claimed that the Peace for Ukraine initiative, a group that has helped mobilize the recent protests, had financed the Georgian Legion's attempts to overthrow the government.
HUR "strongly rejects false accusations of organizing illegal actions in the Slovak Republic," the agency's statement said.
Mamulashvili "has no relation to Ukrainian intelligence, and does not receive any tasks or instructions from the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine. This person terminated his contract with the International Legion of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine in April 2023 and did not renew it," HUR said.
The Georgian Legion is a volunteer unit that has been fighting in Ukraine since 2014. Mamulashvili established the unit to combat Russian forces in eastern Ukraine.
Fico's accusations come at a time of heightened tensions between Kyiv and Bratislava. The termination of Russian gas transit via Ukrainian territory on Jan. 1 triggered retaliatory threats from Fico's Kremlin-friendly government, and Fico has reportedly criticized President Volodymyr Zelensky for supporting the protests in Slovakia.
The demonstrations, held under the slogan "Slovakia is Europe," swept across 30 cities on Jan. 24. Around 100,000 people nationwide chanted slogans like "Enough of Fico" and "We are Europe," voicing opposition to the prime minister's pro-Russian stance.
Natalia Yermak
(Updated: )
