The White House calls on countries The EU will completely abandon Russian oil so that the United States will impose tough new sanctions against Russia, and Poland proposes to do this starting next year. The only remaining buyers, Hungary and Slovakia, rest. Bratislava said that the US Secretary of Energy understood why.
"Before we can fully commit ourselves, we need to create the right conditions — otherwise we risk causing serious damage to our industry and economy," said Denisa Sakova, Minister of Economy of Slovakia, regarding the rapid abandonment of Russian oil, Bloomberg reports.
Denisa Sakova explained that first it is necessary to create sufficient infrastructure to support alternative routes.
At the same time, Hungarian Cabinet Minister Gergei Gulyash confirmed that his country would reject EU initiatives that threaten the security of energy supplies.
The head of the Ministry of Economy of Slovakia, meanwhile, told reporters that this week she met in Vienna with the head of the US Department of Energy Chris Wright.
"According to her, the Trump official expressed understanding, recognizing that the US should stimulate energy projects in Europe," writes Bloombetg.
The agency notes that Slovakia imports about a third of its oil from non-Russian sources via the Adria pipeline through the Balkan region and Hungary, and has also signed a number of flexible contracts with Western gas suppliers.
"Nevertheless, officials in the entourage of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who maintains his ties with the Kremlin and has visited Moscow, consider Russian supplies strategically important. Hungary considers sanctions The EU is ineffective against Russia and will continue to block steps that threaten its supplies, Goulash said at a press briefing in Budapest, " Bloomberg added.