Slovakia follows Hungary in announcing that it may appeal the Russian gas ban
Photo: EPA / Alexander Kazakov

Slovakia will consider filing a lawsuit against the European plan to stop imports of natural gas from Russia to the EU. This was announced on Wednesday said prime Minister of the country Robert Fico.

"I would like to inform you, ladies and gentlemen, that I have instructed the Deputy Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic, Ms. Sakova, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Blanarov, and the Minister of Justice, Mr. Suscu, to present a document at the next government meeting in which we will analyze the possibility of filing a lawsuit against the European Union to stop the supply of Russian gas to Slovakia," he said at a briefing.

In October, EU energy ministers supported a proposal to phase out gas imports from Russia. A complete ban is to be introduced on January 1, 2028. Slovakia, like Hungary, did not support this proposal.

It is not yet certain that Slovakia will file a lawsuit against the EU. "This decision is extremely damaging to us. It will all depend on how the European Commission fulfills its commitments to Slovakia, which were given and signed by the EC President," Fico said.

He reiterated that he considers the cessation of Russian gas imports to be harmful to Slovakia and reiterated his disagreement with the use of frozen Russian assets in the EU to support Ukraine.

Last week, Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova said that Russian gas would account for only one-third of the total supply of Slovak SPP in 2025.

Previously, gas from Russia accounted for the bulk of Slovakia's total gas imports. This year's supplies were affected by the termination of the Ukrainian-Russian gas transit contract.

  • Last month, the EU introduced a new package of sanctionswhich bans imports of Russian LNG until 2027. Slovakia and Hungary continue to receive Russian gas through the Balkan Stream pipeline, bypassing Ukraine.
  • on November 14, the Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban said that his government will sue the European Union due to the EU's decision to gradually stop importing Russian gas.