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Slovakia to use all lawful methods against Ukraine in halted oil transit case

Juraj Blanar confirmed the statement of his Hungarian counterpart that Budapest and Bratislava requested consultations with Kiev with the mediation of the European Commission in view of the suspended Russian oil transit

Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar AP Photo/Petros Karadjias

Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar

© AP Photo/Petros Karadjias

BRATISLAVA, July 22. /TASS/. Slovak authorities will use all the opportunities of EU laws to protect national interests amid the suspension of Russian oil transit by Kiev, Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar said.

Ukraine halted transit of oil of Russia’s Lukoil to Hungary and Slovakia via its territory due to blacklisting of the company by Kiev. Oil is delivered to these countries over the Druzhba oil pipeline passing through the territory of the country.

"We do not accept turning Slovakia into a political tool against Hungary or any other state. We will decisively defend ourselves and use all the opportunities of the European law. We will at the same time defend interests of our sovereign national state," the minister wrote on his page in Facebook (prohibited in Russia due to its ownership by Meta, which has been designated as extremist).

The foreign minister of Slovakia confirmed the statement of his Hungarian counterpart that Budapest and Bratislava requested consultations with Kiev with the mediation of the European Commission in view of the suspended Russian oil transit.

"We consider measures introduced by Ukraine in connection with termination of oil transit from Russia from Lukoil, supplied to Slovakia and Hungary, as an obvious violation of the agreement on association between the EU and Ukraine. We applied to the European Commission today together with the foreign minister of Hungary, urging to take measures on this issue," Blanar added.

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Ukraine Slovakia Hungary

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