EU Commission experts will visit Slovakia to discuss the cessation of gas imports from Russia

Brussels/Bratislava – A group of experts from the European Commission (EC) will visit the Slovak Republic this week from a high-level working group established in cooperation with Slovakia at the beginning of this year, the Eurocommission confirmed to TASR on Tuesday. The delegation will meet with local partners to jointly assess the situation arising from the REPowerEU plan to gradually end the import of energy sources from Russia by the end of 2027.

TASR requested a statement regarding the media-reported information that Slovakia expects a “high-level” visit from the European Commission on July 3 to finalize details. The composition of the delegation was not immediately known.

The Commission reminded that on June 17, it presented a legislative proposal for REPowerEU to ban the import of Russian gas by the end of 2027, which still needs to be negotiated by the European Parliament and the EU Council.

“The Commission is fully committed to continue working very closely with all member states, especially those most concerned about the gradual cessation of gas imports, as was already the case before the legislative proposal was presented,” the EC statement said.

According to it, Brussels has heard Slovakia’s comments but will not comment on them. The Commission stated that it always wants to cooperate with member states and continuously supports them in their efforts to diversify, find alternative reliable energy supplies, improve market integration, and develop infrastructure, all with the aim of completing a true energy union.

“The gradual phasing out of Russian gas alongside decarbonization will strengthen our collective resilience,” said the EU executive body.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, after the one-day meeting of the European Council in Brussels on the night of Friday (June 27), reiterated that Slovakia will not support the 18th package of sanctions against Russia unless it receives guarantees from the European Commission related to the proposal to stop the import of Russian gas from January 2028. He discussed this matter with EC President Ursula von der Leyen before the summit. Representatives of the Slovak government express concerns that disconnecting from energy sources from Russia will not only lead to increased prices but also to higher transportation fees for such commodities. They argue that under the EC plan, Slovakia will become a final country instead of a country benefiting from transit fees. (July 1)