Valletta, Jan 2
The halt in Russian gas transit through Ukraine has sparked fears of supply shortages and soaring energy costs, particularly in landlocked European nations like Slovakia.
Both Ukraine and Russia announced the stoppage on Wednesday, pushing some EU countries to resort to costlier energy alternatives, news agency reported.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on Wednesday said that stopping gas transit through Ukraine to Europe will have "severe consequences for all of us in the European Union (EU), but will not harm Russia."
The stoppage follows Ukraine's decision not to renew a 2019 gas transit agreement between its state-run Naftogaz and Russia's Gazprom, which expired on December 31, 2024.
"At 07:00 a.m. (0500 GMT), in the interests of national security, the transportation of Russian natural gas through the territory of Ukraine was stopped," the Ukrainian Energy Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. Similarly, Gazprom confirmed that it has stopped gas supply due to expiration of key agreements and Ukraine's refusal to renew them.
In a letter to the European Commission (EC) on Sunday, Fico condemned Ukraine's gas transit halt as irrational and warned it would heighten tensions and harm the EU more than Russia. He also indicated his government might consider measures such as cutting electricity supplies to Ukraine.
Slovakia, heavily dependent on Russian gas, is among the worst-hit countries. It imported approximately 3 billion cubic metres of natual gas from Russia through Ukraine annually, accounting for two-thirds of its demand.