Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico stated that Slovakia may cut off funding to Ukrainian refugees living in Slovakia in response to Kyiv’s cessation of Russian gas transit through Ukraine.
Despite Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kyiv continued the transit of Russian gas to the rest of Europe up until Wednesday, Jan. 1 when its contract expired.
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However, Fico, who’s remained friendly toward Moscow despite its invasion, called Kyiv’s decision to not renew Russian gas transit through its territory “sabotage.”
Fico warned that transit should be restored, or a mechanism for compensating Slovakia’s losses – which he said exceeded €500 million a year, should be put in place.
“On behalf of Smer-SD (Fico’s party), I announce that we are ready to negotiate and agree within the coalition on the termination of electricity supplies and a significant reduction in support for Ukrainian citizens residing in the Slovak Republic,” Fico wrote on Facebook.
Fico visited Moscow on Dec. 22, where he met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Following the meeting, Fico offered his services as an “intermediary” for negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.
A similar proposal had been made earlier by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, whose government, like Fico’s, has been a major importer of Russian gas, and which has also remained friendly toward the Kremlin despite its ongoing war in Ukraine.
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Previously, Kyiv Post analyzed energy supply to Slovakia and Hungary and how these countries, unlike Austria and the Czech Republic, remain dependent on Russian hydrocarbons.
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