Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico is threatening to cut financial support for over 130,000 Ukrainian refugees in the country due to a dispute with Ukraine over Russian gas supplies. The tension started when Ukraine shut off a pipeline on January 1 that supplied Central Europe with Russian natural gas, with Slovakia being the main entry point. This move is expected to cost Slovakia millions of euros in transit fees, approximately 500m euros.
Fico has described Ukraine’s decision as “sabotage” and is proposing to halt electricity exports to Ukraine and significantly reduce financial support for Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia. However, he assured that Slovakia has alternative arrangements in place to avoid gas shortages.
The situation is further complicated by accusations from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that Fico is helping Russian President Vladimir Putin “fund the war and weaken Ukraine”. Poland has offered to support Ukraine if Slovakia cuts off electricity exports, which are crucial for Ukraine’s power plants that regularly come under attack from Russia.
The European Commission has stated that the EU is prepared for the change and most states can cope, but Moldova, which is not in the EU, is already experiencing shortages. Russia can still supply gas to Hungary, Turkey, and Serbia through the TurkStream pipeline across the Black Sea .
