European leaders have proposed restarting the flow of Russian pipeline gas as part of a compromise deal designed to prevent Slovakia from vetoing support for Ukraine.
The draft text of a joint statement, set to be issued following talks in Brussels on Thursday, suggests that EU officials could weigh in to broker a deal that would see Kyiv renew an agreement that allowed Moscow to export fuel via the country.
The special European Council summit, which brings together heads of government from across all 27 member states, is designed to help replace military support for Ukraine after President Donald Trump ordered a freeze on aid and intelligence sharing. However, Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico had threatened to derail those efforts, alongside Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán.
“The European Council calls on the Commission, Slovakia and Ukraine to intensify efforts towards finding workable solutions to the gas transit issue, including through its resumption,” the document reads.
An official confirmed that the additions to the proposed Council conclusions were made in exchange for Slovakia dropping its objections to the overall text.
A multibillion-dollar agreement between Russia and Ukraine that allowed Moscow to pump fuel through the country expired at the end of the year. Fico has consistently pushed for its renewal, and accused the EU of failing to support his demands, while threatening to cut Ukraine off from much-needed electricity exports in retribution.
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is attending the summit in person in Brussels, has previously ruled out a resumption and said European countries must realize Moscow is not a reliable energy provider.
“We’re not going to extend the transit of Russian gas,” the Ukrainian president said ahead of the cut-off. “We won’t allow them to earn additional billions on our blood.”
The post EU poised to back return of Russian gas for Slovakia appeared first on Politico.
