Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico has signaled he is willing to resign, after mass protests erupted over the murder of a journalist investigation corruption in the country. Matthew Larotonda reports. </s> The prime minister of Slovakia said Wednesday that he is ready to bow to demands for his resignation as the country's ruling coalition sought to calm anger sparked by the murder of an investigative journalist and his fiancée.

Premier Robert Fico told reporters in the capital that he was prepared to leave office if his left-wing Smer-Social Democracy party is allowed to choose his successor.

"I visited the president today, together with the coalition partners, and I proposed that in order to solve the political crisis I am ready to resign as prime minister," Fico said in a televised news conference.

As Reuters notes, "President Andrej Kiska has called for a government revamp or early elections to rebuild what he says is a crisis of trust."

The offer to resign follows Slovakia's largest protests since the Velvet Revolution of 1989. Demonstrators are calling for a thorough investigation of the shooting deaths of Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova. At the time of his death last month, Kuciak, 27, had been writing about ties between the Italian mafia and individuals close to Fico.

Deutsche Welle reports: "The killings reignited debate about corruption and press freedom in Slovakia, triggering mass anti-government demonstrations across the country."

No one has been charged with the murders, although police have interviewed more than 100 people as part of their probe.

NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson, reporting from Bratislava, says, "many Slovaks say Fico's departure won't be enough. They say the reputation of his government has been damaged."

If the Slovak president accepts Fico's resignation, his successor could be named on Thursday, Soraya says. </s> BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — Slovakia’s president has rejected a proposal for a new government following a crisis triggered by the killing of a journalist and his fiancee.

Last week, the three-party coalition of Prime Minister Robert Fico resigned following massive street protests in the wake of the slayings that shone a light on possible corruption in the government.

President Andrej Kiska asked Fico’s deputy prime minister, Peter Pellegrini, to form a new government but his proposal involving the same three parties that were in the previous government was rejected.

Kiska said tensions in Slovakia would not be calmed by the proposal and he has given Pellegrini until Friday to come up with a better proposal. </s> BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) - Slovakia's prosecutor general has asked Italian authorities to create a joint investigative team with their Slovak counterparts in the case of the slaying of a journalist and his fiancee that triggered a serious political crisis.

Jaromir Ciznar says he expects such a team's investigation into the slayings of Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova would be faster, more complex and more effective.

Kuciak was reporting on alleged Italian mafia ties to associates of then-Prime Minister Robert Fico, and corruption scandals linked to his leftist Smer Social Democracy party.

Candles are placed in memory of slain journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee Martina Kusnirova as Slovaks celebrate the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico and his government as a way out of the political crisis triggered by the slayings of an investigative journalist and his fiancee, during a rally in Bratislava, Slovakia, Friday, March 16, 2018.(AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

The Slovaks previously said the FBI, Britain's Scotland Yard, Europol and police forces from Italy and the Czech Republic are helping with the investigation.

Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters rallied across Slovakia Friday to demand an early election.

People celebrate the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico and his government as a way out of the political crisis triggered by the slayings of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee Martina Kusnirova, during a rally in Bratislava, Slovakia, Friday, March 16, 2018.(AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic) </s> Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico said he would remain an active party leader

Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico has resigned after the murder of a journalist sparked a political scandal.

President Andrej Kiska said he would ask Deputy Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini to form a new government.

Mr Fico had offered to resign on Wednesday if the ruling coalition was allowed to finish its term.

The death of reporter Jan Kuciak has shone a spotlight on corruption in Slovakia, prompting nationwide protests.

The 27-year-old was working on a story linking high-level political corruption in Slovakia with the Italian mafia when he was killed in late February.

His fiancée, Martina Kusnirova, was also murdered in an attack at their home.

On 9 March tens of thousands of Slovaks joined a protest rally in the capital Bratislava, in what is thought to be the largest demonstration in the country since the fall of Communism in 1989.

Image copyright AFP/Getty Images Image caption Jan Kuciak and his girlfriend Martina Kusnirova were found shot dead in their home

Seven suspects arrested in connection with the murders were released without charge last week, and President Kiska called for fresh elections or a "radical reconstruction" of the government to restore public trust.

The prime minister argued those options would undermine the results of the 2016 elections, and accused the president of "dancing on the graves" of the victims.

Mr Pellegrini and his new government will now have to pass a parliamentary vote of confidence.

The prime minister designate believes he already has the 79 votes needed to approve his new cabinet.

The PM's resigned - but will he still pull the strings?

Rob Cameron, BBC News, Prague

"Beware the Ides of March" they warned Julius Caesar, and while the situation in Slovakia is not quite as dramatic as the final days of the Roman Republic, 15 March will be remembered as the end of the Fico era. Standing stiffly in a ceremonial room at Bratislava's presidential palace, Mr Fico watched as his deputy and party colleague Peter Pellegrini was appointed to succeed him.

And there was a note of defiance as the outgoing prime minister told the president - "Rest assured, I'm not leaving politics, I want to be an active party leader".

That's what worries the opposition and the protesters who have filled public squares over the past two weeks. Robert Fico has been prime minister of Slovakia for 10 of the past 12 years, and though he might no longer play an active role in government, they believe he will still be pulling the strings in the background.

They say without a complete change of the guard in Slovakia, what they see as a culture of corruption and impunity will live on.

Organisers have promised a third round of protests on Friday - this time to demand early elections. </s> Slovak President Andrej Kiska has accepted the resignation of Robert Fico from the prime minister's post in the wake of a public outcry resulting from the murder of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak last month.

Speaking at the presidential palace after a meeting with the president on Thursday, Fico announced that his deputy prime minister, Peter Pellegrini, has been put forward to take the reins and establish a new government.

"The nomination of Peter Pellegrini is the most natural thing," said Fico.

Fico said he was sure that forming a new government is the "right step, as early parliamentary elections would not have had any stability."

While Fico has resigned from the prime minister's post, he said he would remain with the party and still be very much present at political events.

On February 25, Jan Kuciak and his fiancee, Martina Kusnirova, both 27, were found shot dead at their home near Bratislava in what police described as "most likely" related to his investigative work.

At the time, he had been investigating an alleged connection between Italy's 'Ndrangheta crime syndicate and high-ranking officials in the Slovak government.

The story was published posthumously by Kuciak's news outlet, Aktuality.

The double-murder sparked a nationwide outcry, with tens of thousands of Slovaks calling for an end to corruption in some the country's biggest demonstrations since the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

Police had initially questioned suspects over the killings, but no arrests have been made.

With pressure mounting on Fico, both President Kiska and a minor member of the ruling coalition Most-Hid Party called for drastic reform or snap elections.

On Monday, Robert Kalinak resigned as interior minister in an effort to prevent the government from collapsing.

Kiska supported Fico's offer to resign on condition that his party be allowed to pick the next government leader in an attempt to preserve the three-party government, government officials said on Wednesday.

The condition has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition and political experts who claim Fico is attempting to retain his influence while also threatening Slovakia's democratic institutions.

"Civil society is not only asking for the resignation of Mr Fico himself, the demand here is for the change of politics of which Mr Fico is a symbol and the frontrunner, said Martin Poliacik, a member of parliament with the new Progressive Slovakia movement.

Viera Zuborova, executive director of the Bratislava Policy Institute, a Slovak think-tank, said the situation harkens back to the final days of the Soviet-aligned government's attempts to cling to power in 1989.

Fico's demands to the president and subsequent retention of power are "unique in modern Slovak history", she said, adding that installing Pellegrini without an election was not in the spirit of democracy.

Currently, regional elections are slated for November with MEP and presidential elections to take place in 2019.

Nationwide protests, meanwhile, are expected to continue tomorrow. </s> A mass protest in Slovakia has been held in honour of a campaigning journalist who was murdered while investigating corrupt links between the government and the Italian mafia.

Jan Kuciak and his fiancee Martina Kunírová were found shot dead at their home in Bratislava on February 25.

Police said Kuciak's death was 'most likely' related to his investigation into alleged ties between top Slovakia politicians and Italy's 'Ndrangheta mafia.

The murder and Kuciak's article, which was published posthumously, raised fresh concern about media freedom and sparked anti-government sentiment in the EU member of 5.4 million people.

The scandal has already forced Slovakia's prime minister Robert Fico to tender his resignation in an effort to allow his party to remain in power.

However, 50,000 people on the streets of Bratislava demanded new elections. They marched under slogans 'Slovakia is going the wrong way' and 'we want elecctions'.

Fico, critics believe, will still be a major influence on the government, which has provoked anger on the streets.

Organisers of the 'For a decent Slovakia' protest had announced there would be rallies in 34 cities at home and 25 cities abroad.

Fico is planning to remain as chairman of the Smer-SD party, with his former deputy Peter Pellegrini earmarked to become prime minister.

The country's three-party government coalition remains in place. It consists of the left-wing populist Smer-SD and two junior partners: the Most-Hid Hungarian minority party and the far-right Slovak National Party.

Earlier on Friday, Pellegrini said he believes his government will 'calm the situation in our country.'

'I can assure you that it will be a government that maintains its clear pro-European orientation,' he added in a statement.

But the leadership change was not enough for activist Filip Vagac in Bratislava.

'A resignation no longer suffices. It has to be them (government politicians) leaving public life. Go away. Enough,' Vagac said.

'November '89 brought enormous changes. I believe that this situation will also start a process that will change Slovakia.'

He was referring to the 1989 Velvet Revolution that toppled Communism in the former Czechoslovakia and was the country's last anti-government protest of this size. </s> Slovakia’s prosecutor general has asked Italian authorities to create a joint investigative team with their Slovakian counterparts in the hunt for the killer of a journalist and his fiance.

Jaromir Ciznar said he expects such an investigation into the fatal shooting of Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova would be faster, more thorough and more effective.

Mr Kuciak was reporting on alleged Italian mafia ties to associates of then-prime minister Robert Fico, and corruption scandals linked to his leftist Smer Social Democracy party, when he was shot dead in February. The death sparked political turmoil in Slovakia.

Officials previously said the FBI, Scotland Yard, Europol and police forces from Italy and the Czech Republic are helping with the investigation.

Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters rallied across Slovakia on Friday to demand an early election after Mr Fico’s government resigned last week. </s> BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — Slovakia's president on Tuesday rejected a proposal for a new government amid a political crisis triggered by the killing of a journalist and his fiancée.

Prime Minister Robert Fico's three-party coalition resigned last week following street protests in the wake of the slayings, which shined a light on possible government corruption.

President Andrej Kiska asked Fico's deputy prime minister, Peter Pellegrini, to form a new government. But Kiska rejected Pellegrini's proposal, which involved the same three parties that were in the previous government.

Kiska said that tensions in Slovakia wouldn't be calmed by the offer, and gave Pellegrini until Friday to come up with a better plan. Pellegrini said he would make a new proposal as soon as Wednesday.

The president said the proposed interior minister, Jozef Raz, was a problem because of his ties to his predecessor, Robert Kalinak, who was previously linked to corruption scandals.

Before he was slain, Jan Kuciak was reporting on alleged Italian mafia ties to associates of Fico and corruption scandals linked to Fico's leftist Smer-Social Democracy party. Kalinak is Fico's close ally in the party.

Kiska said it was unlikely that Pellegrini's proposed government could "ensure an independent investigation into the slayings of Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova and suspicions about the activities of organized crime (that Kuciak) was writing about."

Tens of thousands of demonstrators have rallied repeatedly across Slovakia since the bodies of Kuciak and Kusnirova were found on Feb. 25, in the biggest anti-government protests since the 1989 anti-Communist Velvet Revolution.

Organizers announced more protests for Friday. In a statement, they demanded a thorough and independent investigation into the shooting deaths, including the participation of international investigators, and the creation of a "trustworthy government."
Protests continue in Slovakia after last week's collapse of the government, which included the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico.