Putin says Russia will satisfy Slovakia's energy needs and pushes for deeper cooperation

Russian President Vladimir Putin remarked on Saturday that his country will "satisfy" Slovakia's oil and gas needs amid the ongoing energy crisis.

In a conversation with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico during the Victory Day celebration at the Kremlin, Putin noted that the relations between Moscow and Bratislava have been marked by "a high level of political dialogue and stable cooperation dynamics." However, they are currently complicated by the "confrontational line" imposed by the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), he stressed.

Putin's comments came after Ukraine temporarily halted the transfer of Russian energy products to Slovakia through the Druzhba pipeline.