PRAGUE — On Monday, Slovakia’s Interior Ministry reached a settlement in a lawsuit confirming that former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis did not knowingly engage with the secret police during the communist era of Czechoslovakia.

The ministry acknowledged that interpretations suggesting Babis served as a secret agent for the StB police were unfounded. Babis expressed satisfaction with the resolution of a case that originated in 2012, stating, “I had no doubt that I’d win the dispute.”

Babis, who has roots in Slovakia, had initiated legal action against the Institute for National Memory, which manages portions of the secret police documentation in light of the division of Czechoslovakia into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.

Earlier in February, Slovakia’s Constitutional Court upheld earlier court judgments rejecting Babis’ claims. The court noted that although some records have been lost, the available documents allegedly indicate Babis operated as an agent under the alias “Bures” beginning in 1982—a claim he has consistently denied.

Initially, the regional court in Bratislava ruled against Babis’ lawsuit in 2018. However, following a directive from the Constitutional Court, a retrial was mandated, with the Slovak Interior Ministry being designated as the respondent instead of the Institute.

The ministry’s decision to settle the case was derived from two legal assessments. Currently, Babis, who amassed considerable wealth and previously led the populist ANO movement, finds himself in opposition after his party lost the parliamentary elections in 2021. Last January, he campaigned for the largely ceremonial role of Czech president but was defeated by retired General Petr Pavel.