Slovakia is not yet ready to give up Russian energy supplies via the Druzhba pipeline, Deputy Speaker of the Slovak Parliament Tibor Gaspar told RIA Novosti.
He said that if the European Union makes a final decision to stop importing oil or gas from Russia, supplies via the Druzhba pipeline will likely be suspended again – not due to technical problems or damage, but by political will.
“We in Slovakia are not fully prepared for such a situation“, the politician stressed.
At the end of April, Slovakia resumed receiving Russian oil through the “Druzhba“ pipeline, receiving its first supplies in several months, after Ukraine justified that the facility had been damaged by Russian strikes and was under repair.
Against this backdrop, the EU agreed to two key decisions: a €90 billion loan for Ukraine and approval of the 20th package of anti-Russian sanctions. These initiatives had previously been blocked by Hungary and Slovakia due to the shutdown of the “Druzhba“ pipeline.