PARIS, July 6. /TASS/. Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, who survived an assassination attempt, said he would have joined his Hungarian counterpart, Viktor Orban, on his trip to Russia if his health allowed, AFP reported.

Fico addressed the nation for the first time after the May 15 attack as he appeared at a ceremony on the occasion of a public holiday in Slovakia, Saints Cyril and Methodius Day, on Friday.

Orban traveled to Moscow for talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on July 5. The visit came three days after the Hungarian premier made a trip to Kiev. On Friday, he said that the two countries were very far apart.

An armed attack on Fico took place in the western Slovakian town of Handlova in mid-May. The politician suffered gunshot wounds and had to undergo surgery. The attacker, Juraj Cintula, 71, has been charged with a politically-motivated assassination attempt.