MOSCOW. May 15 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent a telegram to Slovak President Zuzana Caputova condemning the assassination attempt on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.
"I learned with indignation about the attempt on the life of Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovakia Robert Fico. This heinous crime can have no justification," Putin said in a telegram published on the Kremlin website on Wednesday.
He noted that he knew Fico "as a courageous and strong-spirited man." "I very much hope that these qualities will help him endure in this difficult situation," Putin said.
He asked to convey to Fico "words of his most sincere support, as well as wishes for a speedy and full recovery."
Fico was injured in a shooting incident in the town of Handlova, 150 kilometers away from Bratislava, on Wednesday and was taken to a hospital in the town of Banska Bystrica in serious condition. The gunman has been detained, he is a 71-year-old man living in southeastern Slovakia.