Germany urges Slovakia to back EU sanctions on Russia

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has urged Slovakia to show greater support for EU measures against Russia over its war in Ukraine during a visit to Bratislava, dpa reports.

Following talks with his Slovak counterpart, Juraj Blanár, Wadephul said both countries had affirmed their “full support for Ukraine”. He said this should also include ending Russian energy supplies and called on EU partners to “stand together”.

“More pressure” must be put on Moscow because “Russia is showing no willingness to make peace”, Wadephul said, while Ukraine had “repeatedly declared its willingness” to end the war.

He also warned that the EU could not afford to have individual member states block measures such as sanctions.

Blanár condemned Russia’s war against Ukraine as a gross violation of international law but said there could be no military solution to the conflict. “Russia will not disappear from the map,” he said, stressing the need for talks.

Slovakia’s government, led by Prime Minister Robert Fico, has frequently criticised EU sanctions against Moscow and recently pushed for sanctions on Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov to be lifted.

Blanár said phasing out Russian energy would be difficult because Slovakia had built its infrastructure around Russian supplies.

“Slovakia has built its entire infrastructure on the basis of Russian energy supplies,” he said, warning that cutting those ties would cause “huge problems” and could not happen overnight.

Slovakia is seeking alternative supplies, including natural gas from Algeria and oil through Croatia’s Adriatic pipeline, although Blanár said the latter’s capacity was insufficient.

By Aghakazim Guliyev