Slovak PM vows to help Putin block EU move to reject Russian gas
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said he will seek to block the REPowerEU plan, which provides for the EU's rejection of Russian gas and other energy resources from the country.
Source: LIGA.net, a Ukrainian news outlet, citing the Kremlin's website
Details: "If it takes all 27 countries to agree, we will use our veto power on the ban on imports of all types of energy resources," Fico said during a meeting with Kremlin ruler Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 9 May.
"If they decide to vote by majority instead of unanimously, then the great powers will simply make the decisions themselves," Fico said.
Fico argued that the European Union—and Slovakia in particular—is not yet ready to live without Russian energy.
"If you think someone will buy fuel from Westinghouse and introduce it into our nuclear power plants, it's impossible," he explained.
However, Ukraine has been successfully using Westinghouse fuel assemblies since 2015 in VVER-1000 reactors, and since 2023 in VVER-440 reactors, similar to those in Slovakia.
"Stopping gas supplies will cause instability," Fico added. "Our petrochemical plants are set up to use Russian oil, and halting supplies could cause technological issues."
Background:
It was previously reported that, as part of a working group established at Slovakia's request to address gas supply concerns following the anticipated end of Russian gas transit through Ukraine, the European Commission is exploring options to diversify supply—particularly through Azerbaijan.
"I've met with Prime Minister Fico twice in the past few months, and only yesterday did I speak with the country's deputy prime minister. We have a high-level working group that has met four times and will meet again very soon to try to heal some of the adverse effects on the various countries in the region. Slovakia is certainly one of those nations," said Dan Jørgensen, European Commissioner for Energy and Housing.
It was also reported that, despite Europe's frozen energy relations with Russia, representatives from Washington and Moscow held talks regarding potential US assistance in resuming Russian gas sales to the European market.
Following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe has significantly reduced its imports of Russian gas. As a result, Russian energy giant Gazprom suffered losses of US$7 billion last year.
Sources close to the negotiations suggest that Russia's return to the European gas market could be a key factor in reaching a peace agreement with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
It was previously reported that Gazprom would significantly boost gas supplies to Slovakia through the TurkStream pipeline, starting in April. The announcement was made by Vojtech Ferencz, CEO of Slovak importer SPP.
Ferencz noted that the supply volumes will increase several times over the level of the last two months, rather than just doubling as initially expected.
After the cessation of transit through Ukraine at the end of 2024, Slovakia primarily received gas from Hungary, which supplies Russian fuel via the TurkStream pipeline. Bratislava and Budapest are pushing for the resumption of transit through Ukraine, with Slovakia even threatening to veto EU aid to Kyiv if its position is not reconsidered.
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