Bratislava, 16 March (TASR) – The Slovak government can’t accept Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s unilateral and harmful decision to halt the transit of Russian oil, and it also expects European Union (EU) authorities to pressure the Ukrainian leadership to resume the flow of this oil, stated Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) following a telephone call with European Council (EC) President Antonio Costa on Monday regarding preparations for the EU leaders’ summit in Brussels on 19 and 20 March.
        “I appreciate it that we devoted a significant portion of our nearly 45-minute conversation to the issue of resuming the operation of the Druzhba pipeline on Ukrainian territory. The Slovak government can’t accept the Ukrainian president’s unilateral and harmful move to halt oil transit and expects the EU authorities to pressure the Ukrainian leadership to restore the flow of Russian oil, which we’re authorised to receive until the end of 2027,” stated Fico.
        The premier went on to say that in the conversation he emphasised that the EU mustn’t prioritise Ukraine’s interests over those of EU-member states such as Slovakia or Hungary. “I also expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the European Commission (EC) hasn’t yet presented any specific proposals to reduce electricity prices, as prime ministers and heads of EU-member states have repeatedly requested,” added Fico.