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Slovakia may consider reciprocal measures against Ukraine if it doesn’t allow the transit of gas from Russia to Europe.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said he was taken aback by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s refusal to allow flows after the two leaders spoke at a summit in Brussels. Zelenskiy said Ukraine won’t transit Russian-origin gas unless he has assurances the Kremlin won’t benefit financially while the war continues.
That leaves importers such as Slovakia with few options to keep the route open. The country had suggested several alternatives, such as changing the ownership of the gas before it enters Ukrainian territory, but Zelenskiy dismissed these ideas as “games,” Fico told reporters late Thursday.
While Europe as a whole is unlikely to face significant damage if Russia’s flows through Ukraine come to a stop after the end of this year, Slovakia is among a few countries that still rely on those imports, with the nation warning over possible financial damage.
Fico questioned whether Ukraine has “the right to harm the economic and national interests of an individual EU member state” under these circumstances. If Kyiv won’t allow gas transit, he would consider during Christmas whether to adopt retaliatory measures against Ukraine, he said.
Slovakia currently sends power supplies, humanitarian aid and private arms shipments including ammunition to Ukraine. The government under Fico has refused to send military aid from its own reserves and has also rejected supporting Ukraine’s NATO membership. It’s also trying to maintain friendly relations with Moscow and criticizes the involvement of the US and most European Union countries in the war through military support for Ukraine.
The Slovak prime minister said he wants to continue negotiations with the European Commission over the next three to four days in an attempt to find “arguments regarding Ukraine.” He also said that his discussions with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal had been more constructive, and he was surprised by the “blunt” words from Zelenskiy.
Zelenskiy, meanwhile, said on Thursday he was aware of Slovakia’s financial concerns, but said it’s “a bit shameful to talk about money because we are losing people.”
