Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says he will discuss Russian oil issues with the Slovak Prime Minister
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said that he will discuss the issue of purchasing Russian oil with the Slovak Prime Minister, who is visiting Ukraine on Friday, as Kyiv believes these transactions provide funding for Moscow.
Zelenskyy said that during a meeting held on Friday afternoon in Uzhhorod, western Ukraine, he will "discuss" the issue of purchasing Russian oil with the Slovak Prime Minister. He also said that he was very disappointed with Slovakia and Hungary by the US President de Trump, who considers himself a mediator in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The Slovak Prime Minister is known for his pro-Russian stance and harsh criticism of the Ukrainian President, which is contrary to the EU's position. Slovakia and Hungary receive Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline, which was recently attacked by Ukraine, causing tensions between Kyiv and these countries.
In a video conference at an economic forum in Italy, Zelenskyy said, "They continue to buy Russian oil," "funding the Russian military machine." He also added, "The United States is seriously considering cutting the revenue from Russian energy exports, which is the direction it should take." Zelenskyy added, "It is important," that Hungary has also "heard" these "signals" from the United States.
A senior White House official also told AFP that Trump warned his allies, "Europe must stop buying Russian oil."
Hungarian Foreign Minister responded to these criticisms at a meeting, stating that as a member of Europe and the West, Hungary blames the EU. He said, "Hungary cooperates with Russia to ensure energy supply, largely because the EU refused the requests of Southeast European countries, which asked for increased gas pipeline capacity." The minister also accused Croatia, another EU member state, of not "increasing the capacity of alternative pipelines to Hungary," and claimed that Croatia is overcharging for the "transit transportation cost of oil, five times higher than the European benchmark."
After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, the EU imposed a ban on most Russian oil imports. However, the Druzhba (Druzhba) pipeline was temporarily exempted to give Central European countries time to find new energy solutions.
After relying on Russian oil for 60 years, the Czech Republic invested 60 million euros and announced in April this year that it would no longer import Russian oil.
Sources: rfi
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1842488520022219/
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