White House and Slovakia deny report on Trump's mental state

(Patria) - The White House and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on Wednesday denied a report that he expressed concern about President Donald Trump's mental health to other European leaders, AFP reported.

Politico, citing European diplomats, states that nationalist leader Fico told his colleagues at a summit last week that he was concerned about the American leader's "psychological state".

It also states that Fico, a Trump ally, used the word "dangerous" to describe how the US president acted when they met in Florida on January 17.

"This is absolutely fake news from anonymous European diplomats trying to be relevant. The meeting at Mar-a-Lago was positive and productive," White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly told AFP in a statement.

Fico, who shares the same nationalist ideology as Trump, denounced Politico's report as "lies".

"I strongly reject the lies of the hate-filled, pro-Brussels liberal portal Politico," he said on social media X, writing in capital letters as Trump often does on social media.

Without directly mentioning Trump's mental state, Fico said he had "not informally discussed with any prime minister or president about the visit to the USA" and dismissed Politico's report on "how I assessed my meeting" with Trump.

"No one heard anything, no one saw anything, there are no witnesses, but nothing prevented the Politico portal from spreading lies," he said.

Following their meeting at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, Fico said he had "extremely important" talks with the US leader.

The physical and mental health of the 79-year-old Trump, the oldest person ever elected US president, has become an extremely sensitive issue for the White House.

Republican Trump, who turns 80 in June, has consistently portrayed his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden as frail while boasting about his own vitality.

However, there is increasing speculation about Trump's own health, including frequent bruises on his hands and footage of him apparently dozing off at meetings.