The Foreign Ministry called Hungary and Slovakia’s statements about stopping electricity supplies to Ukraine “blackmail.”
21 February 22:12
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has called the statements by the Hungarian and Slovak governments regarding the suspension of electricity supplies to Ukraine from February 23 blackmail.
This is stated in a statement by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, reports "Komersant Ukrainian".
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stressed that such actions are provocative and irresponsible, especially in the context of massive Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
“This threatens the energy security of the entire region, plays into the hands of the aggressor, and harms their own energy companies. In doing so, the governments of Hungary and Slovakia are not only playing into the hands of the aggressor, but also harming their own energy companies, which supply energy on a commercial basis,” the statement said.
The ministry stressed that Ukraine is in constant contact with the European Commission regarding the consequences of Russian strikes on energy infrastructure and has already provided information about the damage to the Druzhba oil pipeline to the governments of Hungary and Slovakia.
“Under daily threats of new missile attacks, security, stabilization, and repair work continues. Ukraine has also proposed alternative ways to resolve the issue of supplying non-Russian oil to these countries,” the statement said.
The Foreign Ministry stressed that Ukraine has always been and remains a reliable energy partner of the EU. At the same time, in response to unfounded threats from Budapest and Bratislava, Kyiv is considering the possibility of activating the “Early Warning Mechanism” provided for in the Association Agreement with the EU.
“We call on the governments of Hungary and the Slovak Republic to engage in constructive cooperation and behave responsibly. Ultimatums should be sent to the Kremlin, and certainly not to Kyiv,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stressed.
What preceded it
We would like to remind you that at the end of January, the transit of Russian oil through Ukraine to Slovakia and Hungary was suspended. This happened after Russia damaged the Druzhba oil pipeline pumping station.
As a result, Ukraine was forced to stop transporting oil to refineries in these countries.
