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Slovakia signals sanctions slowdown
President Peter Pellegrini (centre), Speaker of Parliament Richard Raši (left, Hlas) and Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer) meet at the Presidential Palace in Bratislava on Thursday, 12 June 2025. The trio discussed domestic and foreign policy issues. Pellegrini plans to convene a round-table with party leaders next week to address defence spending ahead of the NATO summit in The Hague. (source: TASR - Michal Smrčok)
Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár (Smer) said on Thursday that Bratislava will “ask to postpone the adoption of the EU’s 18th sanctions package against Russia until decisions are made on the RePower plan”.
Background check: RePowerEU is the bloc’s flagship strategy, launched in May 2022 in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The plan aims to end the EU’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels before 2030. Under the deal, member states must submit national plans by end-2025 detailing how they will phase out imports of Russian gas, oil and nuclear fuel.
Blanár said Slovakia is not alone in raising red flags – he said Spain, Hungary, the Netherlands, Belgium and France also had concerns about RePower.
What’s next: EU ambassadors (Coreper – the Committee of Permanent Representatives) will discuss the sanctions package next week. Foreign ministers are scheduled to vote on it on 23 June. Relevant Slovak ministries, Blanár said, are reviewing the proposal’s potential impact and are expected to deliver a final report by Friday, 13 June.
A shift in Bratislava: Slovakia has supported every EU sanctions package since 2014. But Blanár also reiterated Slovakia will not back sanctions that “harm national economic interests”. Amid the chaos, parliament even surprised itself by passing a non-binding resolution last week urging the government not to support – though not to veto – any sanctions targeting Russia.
Fico digs in: PM Robert Fico (Smer) upped the rhetoric on social media earlier this week, declaring that Slovakia would not support the next sanctions package unless Brussels offers a “real solution” to what he called the looming energy crisis if Russian supplies are cut off. He warned that Slovakia could face serious disruption without access to Russian gas, oil and nuclear fuel.
Important to note: Analysts say the planned 18th package poses no immediate threat to Slovak economic interests – and suggest Fico may be confusing it with RePower. When it comes to energy, Brussels wants to add another 77 tankers to the blacklist of vessels transporting Russian oil, taking the tally of the so-called shadow fleet to over 400. Once sanctioned, these ships can’t dock in EU ports. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU is also pushing to lower the oil price cap from $60 to $45. Sanctions are also planned for the Nord Stream pipelines, aiming to block Russia from earning anything off the infrastructure in future.
Expert: Radovan Geist, a Slovak foreign policy expert, told Aktuality.sk that Fico is likely using the sanctions debate to pressure Brussels over RePower. “If he vetoes the sanctions package, it’ll be for reasons unrelated to its actual content,” Geist said. Decisions on phasing out Russian energy imports will be taken by qualified majority, meaning Slovakia cannot block them alone. In his commentary, Geist noted that if the Commission manages to address concerns from France and Belgium – incidentally the EU’s biggest importers of Russian liquefied natural gas – the RePower plan is likely to move ahead. Geist questioned what PM Fico hopes to gain by threatening to block sanctions, calling the move “theatre”.
The energy equation: Slovakia remains one of the EU’s top buyers of Russian fossil fuels. Since the invasion, it has paid nearly €15 billion for Russian energy. Slovnaft, the Bratislava-based refinery, still sources 60 percent of its oil from Russia. Until recently, it benefited from an exemption allowing sales of Russian-derived fuel to Czechia and Ukraine – a waiver that expired earlier this month. SPP, the state-owned gas company, has rerouted supplies via Hungary through TurkStream following disruptions through Ukraine and continues to trade with Russia. Nuclear fuel is still sourced from Russia, though Slovakia’s Slovenské elektrárne has stockpiled reserves. US firm Westinghouse is expected to deliver its first fuel in 2026, for use in 2027. Slovenské elektrárne also inked a fuel supply deal with France’s Framatome last summer, with first deliveries expected in 2027.
MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR
SOUTHERN SQUEEZE: Slovakia’s backup plan for Russian gas via Turkey is unravelling as Ankara backs out of expansion talks and EU demand keeps falling.
EXODUS MYTH: Slovakia’s grammar school elites may fret about a mass departure – but data show the student exodus is more modest than feared, writes former MP Miroslav Beblavý.
FALLING BEHIND: With low investment, shrinking consumption and rising taxes, Slovakia has slipped far behind regional front-runners like Poland and Czechia.
CAVE ACCESS: Slovakia may soon open a small but archaeologically significant cave in the Manínska Gorge to visitors, pending legal approval, thanks to a newly marked trail and a local caving club’s push for access rights.
FREE AND FESTIVE: Bratislava offers a week of free events – from sunrise yoga at Nivy and international choir performances to a Main Square concert promoting independent living for people with disabilities.
IRISH FIREBRAND: Fresh off a stirring performance for Bernie Sanders, Irish cult icon Jack Lukeman brings his genre-blending, crowd-driven live show to Bratislava’s V-klub on 20 June – promising brooding ballads, unexpected covers and a dose of Irish soul.
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BUSINESS
Bratislava – rising fast
Southbank project in Bratislava (source: Penta Real Estate)
Bratislava’s skyline is set for a dramatic makeover, with seven major developments – from a 260-metre tower to revamped riverbanks – poised to redefine the capital’s silhouette. The building boom signals a bold new era for the city’s urban landscape.
NATURE
Beaver dam destroyed in national park, conservationists sound alarm
A Eurasian beaver in the Zolná stream in the village of Lieskovec, Zvolen district, central Slovakia, on Wednesday, 16 April 2025. (source: TASR)
Environmental groups Aevis and My sme les have filed a legal complaint over alleged illegal logging in the Chotinka area of Poloniny National Park, eastern Slovakia. They claim the operation destroyed the natural habitat of the protected Eurasian beaver, including the removal of a dam, damage to wetland soil, and disruption of a key ecosystem, according to the SITA news agency.
Ondrej Kameniar of My sme les said the dam was likely removed because it obstructed timber extraction. Aevis director Rastislav Mičaník described the incident as a serious breach of protected territory and a symptom of the park’s still-incomplete zoning plan.
The groups are urging the Environment Ministry to investigate the case, identify accountability, and accelerate the zoning process, which has stalled since October 2023. They argue that proper zoning, based on scientific criteria, is essential to safeguard rare habitats – including UNESCO-listed beech forests – and ensure sustainable development in the region.
Related: Prosecutors have challenged the legality of a new zoning plan for the Tatra National Park (TANAP), following a complaint by the My sme les initiative. Activists say the plan, drafted under Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba (SNS), lacks a legally required care programme and reduces protection for Slovakia’s oldest national park. They accuse TANAP director Peter Olexa of incompetence and call for the entire proposal to be redone.
IN OTHER NEWS
Food failures: Czech Defence Minister Jana Černochová revealed that troops stationed in Slovakia from 2022 to 2024 as part of NATO’s multinational battlegroup faced serious food-related issues, including suspected salmonella, prompting reputational concerns and talks of deploying a field kitchen. The Czech side eventually secured a change in catering provider after negotiating with the Slovak Defence Ministry. (Aktuálně.cz)
Sunday talks: More than half of Slovaks - unlike PM Robert Fico - view Sunday political debates as important for public awareness, with younger, educated voters and supporters of centrist and liberal parties most likely to agree, an AKO poll for JOJ 24 found. Just 15 percent said the debates were not important at all.
Fico in Astana: PM Robert Fico met Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Astana on Wednesday as part of his Central Asia tour. With trade nearing €200 million, Fico pushed for deeper cooperation in defence, energy and water management, highlighting joint ventures in arms production as a key opportunity. He offered Slovak nuclear expertise as Kazakhstan eyes its first nuclear plant and floated the idea of importing Kazakh oil via the Druzhba pipeline – subject to technical review. Fico also met PM Olzhas Bektenov, pitching collaboration in agriculture and flood and drought forecasting systems. Kazakhstan is an energy-rich authoritarian state of 20 million.
PM Robert Fico met Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Astana on Wednesday, 11 June 2025. (source: Facebook - Robert Fico)
Unplayed anthem: Slovakia’s controversial new national anthem arrangement, commissioned for €46,500 and backed by Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová, has not been played at any major state or sports event. Despite being officially recommended, the version by composer Oskar Rózsa remains largely ignored amid public backlash and a lack of binding regulation. (SME)
Vila standoff: The parliamentary ethics committee has postponed a decision on whether opposition MP Veronika Remišová will be fined €48,000 after she exposed Defence Minister Robert Kaliňák’s failure to declare his wife’s Croatian villa, a case now entangled in accusations of secrecy breaches and political score-settling. The outcome could set a precedent for how public interest weighs against officials’ privacy in asset declarations. (SME)
Ticketportal sale: Czech media group Mafra is selling Ticketportal, the largest ticket seller in Czechia and Slovakia, to Estonia’s Piletilevi PLG. The deal marks another expansion for the Baltic firm, which already operates in Slovakia via GoOut. (ČTK)
A Russian-made World War II bomb weighing around 100 kilograms was spotted in the Danube near the Mária Valéria Bridge in Štúrovo, Nové Zámky district, on Wednesday evening, 11 June 2025. A passer-by noticed the exposed metal object on the riverbank after water levels dropped and alerted the police, who called in bomb disposal experts. (source: Facebook - Nitra Region Police Department)
Police oversight: Lawmakers rejected Ombudsman Róbert Dobrovodský’s special report on police violence, which urged stronger oversight and legal safeguards following fatal use-of-force cases including the 2024 killing of a homeless man in Košice. Dobrovodský warned that unchecked coercive measures erode public trust and called for stricter rules, enhanced parliamentary scrutiny, and whistleblower protections within the police force. (TASR)
Access curbs: Construction work near the Defence Ministry will restrict access, movement and parking around the Bratislava Foreigners’ Police Department on Regrútska Street from 16 June, police said, urging visitors to use public transport.
Rail disruption: Rail services on the Košice–Zvolen line will be partially replaced by buses between Jesenské and Lučenec from 12 June to 14 August, with trains skipping Fiľakovo station entirely. (ZSSK)
Fuse fix: Households have until the end of June to adjust oversized circuit breakers, as the Slovak regulator (ÚRSO) warn of looming changes to electricity pricing based on actual network capacity use. Distribution firms are finalising optimisations under an EU-driven reform aimed at fairer cost-sharing. (SITA)
FRIDAY WEATHER BRIEFING: Clear to partly cloudy skies, with some temporary cloud cover during the day and the chance of isolated showers in the north. Daytime highs will range from 23°C to 29°C, slightly cooler in the north and east at 17°C to 23°C. (SHMÚ)
Fishermen released sterlets into the Old Danube in the Bratislava district of Čunovo on Thursday, 12 June 2025. A total of 15,000 sterlets were released into the river over the course of Wednesday. (source: TASR)
HAPPY NAME DAY: June 13 is Anton’s turn in the spotlight. If you’ve got one in your contacts, now’s the time for a cheerful všetko najlepšie!
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