BRATISLAVA - On 25 September, during interpellations in the National Council, Slovak Prime Minister Fico said that Slovakia's share of energy imports from Russia is only 2 %. Thus, Slovakia is not making a substantial contribution to the war finances by purchasing Russian energy.

Moreover, the supply of natural gas and oil is not a matter of ideology for Slovakia, but of geographical reality. Fico stressed that the country has no choice but to accept any type of oil, as rebuilding refineries would require considerable financial resources and time. Slovakia's advantage, he said, lies in maintaining imports of energy raw materials from Russia, as this is the most economical choice.

He added that since 1 January this year, when Ukraine stopped the transit of natural gas through Slovakia, the country has lost 500 million euros in transport fees. "We will take all necessary measures. State Secretary of the Slovak Foreign Ministry Marek Eštok will soon leave for a working visit to the US, where one of his main tasks will be to comprehensively explain the real situation of oil and gas supply in Slovakia to our American partners."

CMG