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Strasbourg – Members of the European Parliament (EP) approved negotiations with EU member states on the ban on the import of Russian gas and oil into the Union on Wednesday. Slovak MEPs from various political factions and parties commented on this topic for TASR.
EP Vice-President Martin Hojsík (RE/PS) emphasized that the EU must reduce its dependence on gas as such and make more use of green energy. He pointed out that Russian gas is expensive, which is also felt by the Slovak industry, and it needs to be replaced. Also because Moscow finances the war in Ukraine through its sales, and we should not buy from a war criminal who has blackmailed Europe with gas supplies for many years. “I hear that it can’t be done, that we don’t have sufficient connections. There is a pipeline leading to Poland, built with European money, that can supply Slovakia and its entire gas consumption,” he stated.
Katarína Roth Neveďalová (independent/Smer-SD) disagrees with the ban on the import of Russian gas or the ban on the import of Russian nuclear fuel, which would jeopardize Slovakia’s energy security and its self-sufficiency in electricity production. “As part of diversification, we have some contracts and cooperation with other countries sorted out, but it weakens us in that if we do not transit gas, we lose about half a billion euros for the state budget,” she explained. She claims that the EU’s energy commitments to the USA lead to the Union replacing its dependence on Russian energy with dependence on American liquefied gas.
Miriam Lexmann (EPP/KDH) believes it is right for the Union not to feed the Russian budget and its war machine through payments for Russian energy. “Hungary is already taking all steps to break away from Russian gas, buying non-Russian LNG, and I ask what our government will do to help us get through this difficult period. This will show what kind of leader Robert Fico is and what he can negotiate for Slovakia so that we do the right thing, break away, and do it in a way that does not have economic impacts on the citizens of Slovakia,” she stated.
Ľubica Karvašová (RE/PS) was present when the EP committees proposed a faster cut-off from Russian energy carriers than what the European Commission and member states want, in the case of long-term contracts as early as January 1, 2027. She says this is not a “new topic,” as the EU has been discussing ending its dependence on Russian gas since 2022. There is no reason to wait, as Russia escalates the war in Ukraine and threatens EU states with drones. A new element that the EP brings to the negotiations is the ban on oil imports, and she reminded the MEPs that there is a political commitment for the EU to also cut off nuclear fuel from Russia. “The effort is to avoid dependent trade relations that make us vulnerable or expose us to manipulation regarding prices or our position on the war in Ukraine,” she conveyed.
Branislav Ondruš (independent/Hlas-SD) pointed out that the positions of the EP and member countries vary on this proposal. He considers the proposal to be “selfish” because it does not take into account the position of countries like Slovakia, which find themselves at the end of the pipeline for gas and oil when importing energy from abroad, and it will increase their purchases due to transit through other countries. Importing oil through Croatia will increase the price by one hundred million euros compared to transit fees through Ukraine. He added that this proposal undermines the EU’s climate goals, as the import of American LNG by tankers will exceed what we want to save through ETS 1 and ETS 2 emission allowances, and that the EU’s dependence on Russia will be replaced by dependence on Americans. (October 22)