Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for talks on the natural gas dispute. Technical solutions for natural gas transport could be discussed, it said.
Fico’s office published an open letter to Zelenskiy on Monday proposing a meeting in Slovakia, near the Ukrainian border. “Okay, come to Kiev on Friday,” Zelenskyj responded with an invitation to return to Platform X. He wrote it in English.
As reported, a transit agreement between the warring parties Russia and Ukraine expired at the end of this year. This meant that Russian natural gas exports via pipelines through Ukraine came to a standstill on New Year’s Day. Slovakia is also affected. However, this move was expected; most EU countries, including Slovakia, get their energy from other sources, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US.
Here you can see Fico’s open letter and Zelensky’s response.
Additional costs for Slovakia
However, Fico criticizes that his country is losing its own transit revenues and having to pay additional fees. Due to the higher natural gas price last year, Europe incurred billions in costs. The prime minister aims to resume deliveries and improve his country’s relations with Russia. Slovakia has already stopped military aid to Ukraine.
The price of European natural gas has temporarily undergone a downward trend since the beginning of this year. On Monday morning, the TTF futures contract for Dutch natural gas temporarily recorded 47.49 euros per megawatt hour. According to observers, the reasons for the increase are the uncertain supply and the prospect of increased demand due to the current cold wave.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
