BRATISLAVA, February 27. /TASS/. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said after a phone call with Vladimir Zelensky that they different views on the technical condition of the Druzhba oil pipeline.

"The conversation confirmed that we have differing views on the condition of the pipeline. While our intelligence information confirms that the pipeline is not damaged and nothing prevents the transit of oil, the Ukrainian President insisted that repairing the pipeline requires a long time," he wrote on his Facebook account (Facebook is banned in Russia due to its ownership by Meta, which has been designated as extremist).

He recalled that Zelensky did not allow either the Slovak ambassador or EU ambassador to Ukraine to inspect the pipeline. "Zelensky rejected such inspection activity, referring to a negative position of the Ukrainian intelligence services," he noted, adding that during the call he "gained a clear impression that the Ukrainian side has no interest in resuming the transit of oil through Ukrainian territory."

The Slovak prime minister also stated that Zelensky "proposed a joint meeting with the Slovak side on all aspects of Ukrainian-Slovak cooperation" and he accepted this invitation and instructed relevant government agencies to agree a suitable date for such a meeting with the partners. He noted that he’d rather such a meeting be held in a EU member state Zelensky "frequently visits."

Supplies of Russian oil to Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline across Ukraine were suspended in late January. According to Fico, oil pumping will be resumed not earlier than March. Last Wednesday, the Slovak government announced a crisis situation in the country amid oil shortages. In response to it blocking the transit Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline, Slovakia has halted electricity supplies to Ukraine.