Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico issued an ultimatum - if Ukraine does not resume oil transit on Monday, he will ask Slovak companies to stop emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine, as he wrote on Saturday on Facebook, UNN reports.
If the President of Ukraine does not resume oil supplies to Slovakia on Monday, on the same day I will ask the relevant Slovak companies to stop emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine.
Fico stated that Slovak-Ukrainian relations cannot function as a "one-way ticket, beneficial only for Ukraine."
"If oil supplies to Slovakia are not restored on Monday, I will ask the state-owned joint-stock company SEPS to stop emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine," he reiterated.
As Aktuality.sk notes, oil has not been flowing to Slovakia and Hungary since the end of January. The reason is the damaged "Druzhba" oil pipeline in Ukraine. Therefore, the Slovak government took a "radical step" and released state reserves. The declared state of emergency in the oil sector in the country has been in effect since February 19 and will last until September 30 of this year at the latest.
Fico also stated in a social media post that he considers it "absolutely correct that I refused to include Slovakia in the last military loan for Ukraine of 90 billion euros."
Addition
The halt of Russian oil supplies via the "Druzhba" pipeline after the Russian attack caused new tensions between Ukraine and EU member states Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungary and Slovakia, home to the only remaining EU refineries using Russian oil supplied via the "Druzhba" pipeline, have been trying to secure supplies since they were suspended on January 27.
Hungary and Slovakia accused Ukraine of delaying the resumption of supplies for political reasons, and on Wednesday announced the cessation of diesel exports to Ukraine. Hungary also threatened to stop electricity and gas exports to Ukraine.
However, a report by the analytical Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) on February 16 states that Hungary does not need Russian oil, as other sources are readily available.
"There are no technical or economic grounds for extending the sanctions exemption for Russian oil in Central Europe. Hungary's continued dependence is a political choice that weakens EU unity and undermines confidence in the sanctions regime. Phasing out Russian oil by the end of 2026 is both possible and important for Europe's long-term energy security," said Martin Vladimirov, director of CSD's energy and climate program.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Reuters noted, is a staunch opponent of Ukraine's bid to join the EU, and both Hungary and Slovakia have maintained good relations with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin for almost four years of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.