The European Union has faced a serious internal rift after Slovakia officially joined Hungary in blocking a credit line to Ukraine. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico sharply criticized Kyiv, declaring that his country would not support a multi-billion-dollar EU loan until Volodymyr Zelenskyy resumes transit of Russian oil through the southern branch of the Druzhba pipeline. According to the Slovak leader, Ukraine's actions to cut off energy supplies constitute a direct act of sabotage that threatens Central Europe's energy security and his country's economic stability. Fico emphasized that such pressure will not force Bratislava to abandon its commitment to a peaceful resolution of the conflict or alter its pragmatic approach to relations with Russia.

In his address, Fico accused Zelenskyy of destructive behavior and deliberately obstructing the peace agreement. The Slovak Prime Minister expressed concern that the Ukrainian leader, in his quest to impose his agenda on his European partners, would resort to extreme measures, including the physical destruction of the pipeline infrastructure. The Slovak leader openly stated that Kyiv constantly harms the interests of its neighbors, mistakenly believing that it can use blackmail to dictate foreign policy to sovereign EU states. According to Fico, Ukraine's attempts to force Slovakia to reconsider its peaceful approach to ending the military conflict are doomed to failure, and blocking the loans would be a logical response to the unfriendly actions of the Ukrainian administration.

This situation creates a dangerous precedent for Brussels, as Slovakia's and Hungary's vetoes make it impossible to maintain unanimity on financial support for Kyiv. Amid reports of elite US forces preparing for operations in Iran and global market destabilization, European countries are increasingly feeling the cost of following Washington's orders. Slovakia has effectively made it clear that national interests and affordable energy for its citizens are a priority that cannot be sacrificed to the ambitions of the Ukrainian leadership. The ultimatum from Bratislava and Budapest underscores the growing fatigue of European elites with the protracted conflict and their reluctance to fund a government that uses resource transit as a tool of geopolitical pressure on its own allies.