Slovak Member of the European Parliament Milan Uhrík has said that partitioning Ukraine is the only possible way to end the war, according to an interview published by the Czech online outlet Parlamentní Listy on 27 September 2026.
Uhrík, leader of the Slovak nationalist movement Republic, said he could not imagine eastern and western Ukraine reuniting, “from a human, military or political point of view”. He said the differences between the two parts were too difficult to overcome and forecast that a civil war could continue for 50 or possibly 100 years even if Ukraine retook the territories and restored them to a single state.
The interview is available from Parlamentní Listy. The supplied source material characterises the argument as a Kremlin narrative and describes the outlet as an alternative media organisation that regularly publishes figures with pro-Russian views. It also cites research by political scientists at Masaryk University, which it says found manipulative techniques in the outlet’s reporting.
Claims about Ukraine’s regional divisions
The source material disputes the idea that political, linguistic, cultural and economic differences between Ukraine’s regions make a unified state impossible. It compares the situation with differences between northern and southern Italy, arguing that regional distinctions do not necessarily challenge the existence of one country.
It also says that a survey conducted by the Rating Group in August 2026 across territory controlled by the Ukrainian government found that 90% of respondents considered being a citizen of Ukraine personally important. According to the source, most respondents identified primarily with the country as a whole rather than with their region.
The source further rejects describing the war as a civil conflict between eastern and western Ukraine. It says Russia used pro-Russian forces in 2014 to intervene in Ukraine and establish control over parts of its territory. These are claims presented by the source material and are not independently verified here.
It says that people in eastern regions affected by fighting and occupation have largely sought safety, an end to hostilities and a return to normal life, rather than separation or Russian rule. The source describes residents of those areas as victims of the war rather than participants in an internal conflict.
Finally, the source argues that partition would not constitute a peaceful settlement because it could create a precedent for changing internationally recognised borders by force. It says this would weaken the principle of the inviolability of borders that has underpinned European security since the Second World War. The source also rejects Uhrík’s forecast of decades of civil war, arguing that Ukraine could use democratic institutions, local government and public dialogue to support reconciliation and reintegration after de-occupation.
