Bloomberg: Slovakia threatens Ukraine with power cuts over gas flow halt

Flows of Russian gas to Europe look poised to halt on Jan. 1, Prime Minister Fico is pushing for an alternative deal, reports Bloomberg.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico threatened to cut off back up power supplies to Ukraine if Kyiv stops transporting Russian gas to Central Europe.

“After January 1, we will assess the situation and potential reciprocal measures against Ukraine,” Fico said in a video posted on Friday evening. “If necessary, we will stop supplying electricity that Ukraine urgently needs during network outages.”

Russian gas that flows through Ukraine to Europe will halt at the end of the year when the current deal expires if an alternative can’t be found. Slovakia is one of the biggest remaining buyers and has been cranking up the pressure on Ukraine to find a solution. Fico threatened to retaliate if Volodymyr Zelenskiy doesn’t give him what he wants and the comments on Friday are his strongest yet.

Fico justified the threat by pointing to the significant impact that stopping flows of Russian gas would have on Europe’s economy. The European Union will face an additional 120 billion euros ($125 billion) in energy costs over the next two years as a result of a halt, according to Fico.

“Stopping the transit of Russian natural gas through Ukraine is not just a hollow political gesture. It’s an extremely costly move, one that we, in the European Union, will pay for,” Fico said.

Neither Russia or Ukraine can see an extension of the deal on the same terms. The Slovak Prime Minister wants to maintain gas transit beyond 2024 and says he has suggested alternative solutions that would not require contact between the two warring nations.

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