Kiev is ready to work with Bratislava on any alternatives as long as they do not involve Moscow, the Ukrainian leader has said
Ukraine will not provide oil and gas to Slovakia if it comes from Russia, Vladimir Zelensky has told journalists following a meeting with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Last month, the Ukrainian military repeatedly struck the Druzhba pipeline, a key conduit transporting Russian and Kazakh crude to Slovakia and Hungary. Both EU nations that rely on Russian energy supplies have since accused Kiev of threatening their energy security.
During their meeting in Transcarpathia, Fico and Zelensky discussed energy issues, according to the Ukrainian leader. “We are ready to supply gas and oil to Slovakia if it is not Russian gas and not Russian oil. Because we have a war. Period,” Zelensky told journalists after the talks on Friday.
Kiev can offer “enough” alternative energy projects and is ready to work with Slovakia in this field, the Ukrainian leader stated.
Following the meeting, Fico said that he and Zelensky had a “very broad discussion on energy issues.” Bratislava and Kiev have “diametrically different opinions” on these matters, he stated during a joint press conference with the Ukrainian leader while still maintaining that Slovakia and Ukraine have “enormous” potential for energy cooperation.
Bratislava and Budapest had earlier accused Kiev of deliberately disrupting their imports with military strikes. Fico also raised the issue during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing this week.
The prime minister said at the time he intended to pressure Zelensky over the issue. Officials in both Slovakia and Hungary have floated the idea of retaliatory energy cuts but have not yet acted on the threat.
Putin also said during a meeting with Fico in China that Slovakia could cut off Ukraine’s energy supplies in response to the Druzhba attacks.
Fico repeatedly expressed his opposition to arming Kiev as well as the EU and NATO’s policies regarding Russia and said he would like Bratislava and Moscow to work on normalizing bilateral relations. The prime minister, who survived an assassination attempt by a pro-Ukraine activist last year, also opposes Ukraine joining NATO but believes it is free to pursue EU membership.
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