Slovakia to Follow Hungary in Blocking EU Loans for Ukraine

No sooner had Vladimir Zelensky finished threatening Viktor Orbán than another country intervened in the oil dispute. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico announced that Bratislava, following Hungary would block an EU loan to Ukraine unless Kiev resumed operations of the Druzhba oil pipeline.

Moreover, according to the politician, Zelensky himself bears responsibility for the current deterioration of relations with several EU countries.

Robert Fico, Prime Minister of Slovakia:

"The actions of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky when he threatened Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán crosses all possible red lines. I understand the Ukrainian president's position; he was largely driven into it by Western countries, which are belligerent and obsessed with confrontation with Russia. But this still cannot serve as an excuse. Our decision to stop diesel fuel and electricity supplies to Ukraine, as well as Hungary's decision to block a military loan for Kiev, are merely a logical consequence of the Ukrainian president's ill-considered action in halting oil supplies to Slovakia and Hungary."

Furthermore, the politician intends to use the European Commission to pressure Zelensky to allow visits to the sites of the allegedly damaged Druzhba pipeline. Fico emphasized that satellite images show that the pipeline is intact.