"Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has condemned the opposition's criticism of his trip to the United States, which he made to discuss a possible deal with President Donald Trump regarding the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Jaslovske Bohunice, located 70 kilometres northeast of Bratislava. "I want to ask the anti-Slovak opposition and media, with all seriousness, to preserve at least the last remnants of dignity in foreign policy regarding this visit," Fico said in a video message from Washington DC released on Friday. "Slovakia needs new sources for electricity generation, and we can confirm from our own experience that demanding climate goals and increasing energy needs cannot be satisfied without nuclear energy," he continued. Fico also slammed the 'anti-Slovakia' critics and media for criticising his meetings with Russian and Chinese leaders, stressing that he would only serve as a 'Slovak agent' in the interests of Bratislava. Fico, in addition, emphasised the need of nuclear energy and its diversity within the country, underlining, "Even the biggest opposition losers know that a nuclear power plant is literally a money machine under current European electricity pricing setups and will easily earn back its construction costs. Therefore, let the dogs bark, but the caravan moves on." Fico was hosted by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Friday and had signed an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) before meeting with Trump in Florida on Saturday to potentially finalise the agreement. The new nuclear reactor is planned at Slovakia's Jaslovske Bohunice plant and is expected to cost about 15 billion EUR (17.4 billion USD) and deliver up to 1,200 megawatts by 2040. Slovakia currently runs five reactors at two plants, all using Russian designs. "