PRAGUE, June 28. /TASS/. Slovakia is poised to suffer the most from the expected EU decision to stop importing gas from Russia, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Radio Slovensko.
"We will be the hardest hit country," he said.
He criticized the EU's plan to end the imports as "a shot in the knee" and "another harmful ideological decision because of its obsession with Russia." According to Fico, he told the European Commission president about the country’s concerns. The commission acknowledged Slovakia's concerns and expressed an understanding, he said.
The prime minister offered a few comments on Ukraine.
"I think what we need in Ukraine is a swift end to the war. After the European Council meeting, I don't have the feeling that there is much interest in that," he said.
The concluding documents of the European Council meeting, he said, expressed no desire to put pressure on the sides of the conflict to achieve a ceasefire in Ukraine as soon as possible. He supported the prospect of the country's membership in the EU, saying it would benefit Slovakia.
Fico rejected the idea of meeting with Vladimir Zelensky.
"There is no point in it, no significance, as he hates me. He hates me because I allow myself to express my own opinion about the war in Ukraine. I reproached him that he robbed Slovakia of 500 million [euros] by halting the transit of Russian gas," he said.
According to Fico, the potential visit of Slovak President Peter Pellegrini to Ukraine would have only symbolic significance. At the same time, he said holding talks with the Ukrainian prime minister does make sense. They could next meet in the fall during a planned joint meeting of the two countries' cabinets. |
