PRIME MINISTER Robert Fico spoke with US Vice President Joe Biden by phone. The two discussed the situation in eastern Ukraine, the TASR newswire reported on April 17.
“The US vice president appreciates the approach of Slovakia to the reverse gas flow,” the PM’s spokesperson, Beatrice Szabóová, told TASR.
The US vice president underscored the United States’ support for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis in Ukraine, contingent on Russia’s disavowal and cessation of destabilising actions within Ukraine. The two leaders agreed that if Russia further escalates the situation in Ukraine, it will face mounting consequences for its actions, according to the official statement published by the White House.
Both statesmen also exchanged current information about the security and energy situation in Ukraine. Biden thanked Fico for Slovakia’s commitment to bolstering energy security within Europe, including supporting the reverse flow of natural gas to Ukraine, according to the White House statement.
The politicians agreed that their mutual dialogue will continue after Biden’s planned visit to Kiev, Szabóová added for TASR.
Biden and Fico also discussed Ukraine by phone on April 9. They talked about Russia violating Ukraine’s sovereignty and the upcoming elections in Ukraine, according to the AP newswire. The US vice president thanked Slovakia for helping Ukraine diversify its energy supply, which western nations see as key to reducing Europe’s dependence on Russian gas, AP wrote.
“Biden sent a signal that they also consider the reverse gas flow an extremely important matter in Washington,” Alexander Duleba from the Slovak Foreign Policy Association told the Sme daily at the time.
Source: TASR, the White House website, Sme
Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
