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Brussels ‘must take position’ on Romanian presidential election controversy one way or another: Slovak PM Fico

By Thomas Brooke | Remix News | March 11, 2025

The European Commission is under increasing pressure to address the unfolding political crisis in Romania after Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico called for clarity on the rejection of Calin Georgescu’s presidential candidacy.

Fico’s remarks, shared on social media, warn that the Commission’s silence would further undermine trust in the European Union.

Fico emphasized that the European Commission “must take a position” on the situation one way or another, asserting that either Georgescu, a nationalist and NATO-skeptic, is right, or the Romanian authorities’ decision to bar him from running is justified.

“The European Commission (EC) must take a position on the presidential elections in Romania — and take responsibility for it. If Mr. Georgescu is being wronged simply because he has a different opinion, he must be given European protection. If the EC is convinced that the Romanian authorities are doing the right thing, it must stand up for them. The only thing the EC cannot do is to remain silent,” Fico declared.

The controversy erupted after Romania’s Central Electoral Bureau (BEC) rejected Georgescu’s candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections on Sunday evening. The decision, taken with 10 votes in favor out of the 14-member committee, sparked protests in Bucharest, where demonstrators clashed with police, waving national flags and chanting slogans calling for “revolution.” Riot police used tear gas to disperse the crowd, and multiple arrests were made.

The BEC cited a missing signature on an annex of Georgescu’s declaration of wealth as the reason for his disqualification. Former Constitutional Court judge Tudorel Toader clarified that the annexes are a mandatory component of the documentation and that both substantive and procedural requirements must be met.

Georgescu, who had previously won the first round of the presidential elections before they were annulled, condemned the decision as a political maneuver. “A direct blow to the heart of democracy worldwide! I have one message left! If democracy in Romania falls, the entire democratic world will fall! This is just the beginning. It’s that simple! Europe is now a dictatorship, Romania is under tyranny!” he wrote on social media.

Fico drew parallels between Georgescu’s case and his own experiences in Slovakia, where he claims he faced politically motivated efforts to imprison him as an opposition leader between 2020 and 2023. He accused the European Commission, particularly then-justice commissioner Didier Reynders, of turning a blind eye to alleged democratic backsliding in Slovakia because the country’s government at the time was aligned with Brussels.

“The EC at that time did not give a damn about Slovakia. They had an obedient government, and nobody cared about the rights of the leader of the opposition and the nature of democracy in Slovakia,” Fico wrote.

The rejection of Georgescu’s candidacy has drawn sharp criticism from several political figures and observers, including Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, leader of Spain’s Vox party Santiago Abascal, and U.S. billionaire Elon Musk.

George Simion, president of Romania’s right-wing Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) party, insisted the decision was overtly political. “It was rejected without any reason. All the papers were in good order. We live in a dictatorship. Please help us. Please be on our side to restore democracy in Romania,” Simion stated.

Fico warned that the EU’s credibility is on the line, warning that if it does not take a view, “a dangerous precedent is being set where, in a free democratic election, it will be possible to remove a successful candidate simply because he does not hold a favorable opinion.”

March 11, 2025 Posted by | Civil Liberties, Progressive Hypocrite | , , , | Leave a comment

Hungary and Slovakia’s leaders support Trump against Zelensky

Remix News | March 3, 2025

National leaders from Hungary and Slovakia are siding with President Donald Trump following his feud with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office on Friday.

During the meeting, which had been demanded by Zelensky, Trump and Vance criticized the Ukrainian leader for wanting to continue the war rather than sue for a ceasefire with Russia when he is unable to win on the battlefield. They further castigated him for not being thankful enough for the considerable support from the US that he has received until now.

Reports suggest that hundreds of thousands on both sides have already been killed in the conflict.

The meeting was so contentious that many commentators believe it could signal a complete change in direction in Washington’s approach to the war.

“Strong men make peace, weak men make war,” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán wrote on X. “Today President Donald Trump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!”

The Hungarian government has been urging negotiations rather than continued fighting to end the conflict from its outset.

Balazs Orbán, who is a Hungarian MP as well as Viktor Orbán’s political director, made a more detailed statement on X. “In light of the events yesterday it is helpful to clarify Hungary’s position and the principles on which it is based,” he wrote. He then outlined five points:

“1. Hungary should fight only for the Hungarians, never for anyone else.

2. Hungary should build alliances with those who want peace.

3. If we do not look after our own interests, no one else will represent them.

4. If Europe is doing crazy things, then let’s try to convince them of the nonsense of their chosen strategy.

5. If that fails, then, by all means let us save ourselves, and let our approach be based on our own national interests. (See point 1 et al.)”

He concluded his tweet by referring to the fact that a European Council summit will be held in the coming week to discuss a joint statement by European leaders on the Ukrainian war that is to be made. “A tough week ahead,” Balazs Orbán concluded.

Hungary was not alone in supporting the American President’s tough line with Zelensky. Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, who, like Orbán, has long encouraged negotiations rather than further violence to end the Ukrainian war, published a lengthy statement on X concerning it.

“Slovakia will not support Ukraine either financially or militarily to enable it to continue the war,” Fico said.

Fico added that “Slovakia has reservations about the ‘peace through strength’,” and that “Ukraine will never be strong enough to negotiate from a position of military power.”

Fico further stated that he believes that the European summit should call for an “immediate ceasefire” in Ukraine, and that “if the summit does not respect that there are other opinions besides simply continuing the war, the European Council may not be able to agree on conclusions regarding Ukraine on Thursday.”

Other leaders of European Union member states, as well as EU politicians, were quick to voice their support for Zelensky and Ukraine. The Vice President of the European Commission, Kaja Kallas, wrote on X that “today, it became clear that the free world needs a new leader.”

After being thrown out of the White House, Zelensky then travelled to London, where he met with Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Saturday. Starmer promised the Ukrainian leader an additional 2.8 billion euros in aid by next week.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, for his part, urged the Ukrainian president to fix his relations with Trump. Rutte told the BBC that it is “important that President Zelensky finds a way to restore his relationship with the American president and with the senior American leadership team.”

Orbán made it clear on Saturday that Hungary is considering blocking any EU resolution on the Ukraine war that does not encourage negotiations aimed at peace. In a letter addressed to European Council President António Costa, Orbán stated that “I am convinced that the European Union – following the example of the United States – should enter into direct discussions with Russia on a ceasefire and sustainable peace in Ukraine.”

“This approach is not reconcilable with the one reflected in the draft conclusions,” he added.

Orbán then said that he is proposing “not to attempt adopting written conclusions on Ukraine” in the upcoming summit, but rather “to limit written conclusions to recalling and supporting UN Security Council Resolution 2774 (2025) adopted on 24 February 2025.” The UN resolution he referenced was put forward by the US, and does not mention Russian aggression as the cause of the war.

“The Resolution signals a new phase in the history of the conflict and renders all previous agreed language by the European Council irrelevant,” Orbán asserted.

March 2, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , | Leave a comment

Ukrainian attack on TurkStream threatens Hungary’s sovereignty – FM

RT | March 1, 2025

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has condemned a recent drone attack on a compressor station of the TurkStream gas pipeline, labeling it an assault on his nation’s sovereignty due to the conduit’s critical role in its energy security.

Szijjarto’s comments came on Saturday after the Russian military reported thwarting a Ukrainian drone attack on the Russkaya compressor station on Friday night. This station is a critical facility for the TurkStream, also known as Turkish Stream, pipeline in Russia’s Krasnodar Region, serving as the point of exit on Russian soil for gas deliveries. The Defense Ministry stated that three drones were neutralized by air defense systems, preventing any damage to the station’s operations.

“The Turkish Stream pipeline is the guarantee of Hungary’s natural gas supply security; therefore, any potential disruption would seriously jeopardize our energy security,” Szijjarto wrote on Facebook. “Energy security is a matter of sovereignty, and therefore this type of attack should be considered an attack on sovereignty.”

The pipeline, which has been operational since January 2020, delivers Russian natural gas to Turkish customers and several European countries, including Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Greece.

The Hungarian minister also called on the European Commission to clarify its stance on the matter, reminding it of its recent assurance that Ukraine would not target EU-bound infrastructure.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov informed Szijjarto about the attempted attack during a phone conversation initiated by Hungary, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. He explained the incident and its implications for the pipeline’s security.

The incident is not the first involving the facility. Back in January, Ukrainian forces attempted to attack it with nine kamikaze drones, according to the Russian military. All of the UAVs were intercepted, but debris from the explosions caused minor damage to the station.

Commenting on the incident at the time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Ukraine of engaging in acts of “energy terrorism.”

March 1, 2025 Posted by | Militarism, War Crimes | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Foreign ‘experts’ plotting coup – Slovakia’s Fico

RT | January 22, 2025

A group of foreign coup “experts” has been discovered in Slovakia, the country’s prime minister, Robert Fico, has claimed. He added that Bratislava will take unspecified precautionary measures against any Ukraine-style political unrest allegedly being fomented in the country.

Citing a confidential report compiled by the Slovak Information Service (SIS) intelligence agency, Fico made the remarks in the capital on Tuesday during a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime minister Viktor Orban.

“There is a group of experts on the territory of the Slovak Republic that had actively operated in Georgia and during the Maidan in Ukraine,” Fico said, referring to the 2014 violent Western-backed coup in Kiev that toppled Ukraine’s democratically-elected president Viktor Yanukovich.

It was not immediately clear, with regard to Georgia, whether the PM was referring to the most recent pro-Western protest that unfolded in the country late last year in the wake of a contested general election or to earlier political turmoil such as the so-called Rose Revolution of 2003.

The group of foreign operatives is being “strictly monitored,” Fico revealed, pledging to address the issue with Slovakia’s Security Council on Thursday and to take unspecified yet significant precautionary measures.

The PM, who survived being shot multiple times at close range by a pro-Ukraine activist, accused the country’s opposition and “foreign actors” of seeking to overthrow the government.

“I cannot disclose the content of the report, but I can say in all seriousness that the opposition is preparing a ‘Maidan.’ It is gearing up to thwart the government from exercising its powers and it will do this in cooperation with foreign actors,” he told the press conference.

Fico unveiled the SIS report earlier on Tuesday ahead of a no-confidence vote staged by the opposition. However, the PM said the document could be only discussed behind closed doors due to its sensitive nature. In protest, the opposition called off the no-confidence motion, promising to launch another.

The opposition has dismissed the report as a compilation of “conspiracy theories,” with MPs claiming there was nothing confidential about it as it contained only information “anyone can find on Google.”

A lawmaker with the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) Frantisek Miklosko claimed the whole affair was a preparation for a false-flag incident hatched by the government itself.

“It would not be difficult for someone to stage a provocation at an otherwise peaceful demonstration, providing an excuse to claim they’re protecting the state… while beginning to detain individuals based on some list,” the MP reasoned.

January 23, 2025 Posted by | Aletho News | , , | Leave a comment

EU member pledges to veto future Ukraine aid

RT | January 19, 2025

Slovakia will veto any future Ukraine aid considered by the EU, Prime Minister Robert Fico has announced. Bratislava will now take a “reciprocal” approach to hostile moves by Kiev, he warned.

Fico issued the threat in a video address posted to social media late on Saturday. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky believes everyone should be his “servant,” Fico asserted, warning such an approach would not work with him.

“In my case, the scythe hit a rock. Robert Fico is a Slovak prime minister and not a Ukrainian servant,” Fico stated.

Bratislava will take a “reciprocal” approach to Kiev in the row over the transit of Russian natural gas that Kiev ended at the beginning of the new year, Fico warned, pledging to veto any future aid packages from the EU. The packages require unanimous backing from all the members of the bloc to be passed.

The Slovak prime minister also reiterated other potential moves against Ukraine that he had articulated previously, namely halting the emergency electricity supply, stopping humanitarian aid deliveries, or cutting benefits received by Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia.

“I am increasingly convinced that President Zelensky is forcing us into reciprocity, and we will go for it,” Fico stated.

Once a major supporter of Ukraine, Slovakia changed its stance after Fico took office in late 2023, halting military aid to the country and pledging to veto its potential accession into the US-led NATO bloc.

The already strained relations between Bratislava and Kiev have further deteriorated owing to the row over the Russian gas, which Slovakia has been heavily dependent upon. Kiev opted not to renew the transit contract and halted the flow despite Moscow’s repeated signals that it was prepared to continue supplying its customers in the EU through Ukraine’s pipeline system.

Fico initially proposed negotiating with Zelensky on the border between the two countries, but the latter urged him through social media to come to Kiev instead. The response was deemed undiplomatic in Slovakia. Fico then proposed to meet Zelensky in Davos next week, where both leaders are expected to head. The proposal was openly mocked by Kiev, with Zelensky suggesting the Slovak leader could end up in Sochi, Russia, instead.

January 20, 2025 Posted by | Economics | , , , | Leave a comment

Ukraine attempted drone strike on Russian gas supply to NATO states – Moscow

RT | January 13, 2025

Ukraine has launched an unsuccessful drone attack on Russian energy infrastructure which delivers natural gas to Türkiye , the Defense Ministry in Moscow reported on Monday.

The attempted sabotage took place on Saturday and involved nine kamikaze drones, which Ukrainian forces launched at the Russkaya gas compressor station near the village of Gaikodzor in Russia’s Krasnodar Region, according to a statement from the ministry.

The site is crucial for the operation of the TurkStream pipeline, which delivers natural gas from Russia to Türkiye under the Black Sea. Several nations in southern Europe, including EU member Hungary, use the Turkish route to receive supplies. Kiev’s attack was “aimed at stopping the supply of gas to European nations” through the neutral intermediary, the Russian Defense Ministry stated.

The Ukrainian attack against the Russkaya station was largely thwarted, the military added. One fixed-wing drone crashed close to a gas meter and caused minor damage, which was swiftly fixed by the facility’s personnel, it said. The incident caused no interruption in supplies, the statement stressed.

Kiev has refused to renew a transit contract with Russia which expired at the start of this year, and which had involved Russian gas being supplied to EU countries through Ukrainian territory. Slovakia, one of the nations affected by the decision, has accused Ukraine of causing an energy crisis.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has described Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky as someone who “roams Europe begging and blackmailing” Western nations in the hope of extracting more military assistance to fight Russia.

Zelensky previously accused Fico of striking “shady deals” with Moscow and of undermining the EU’s “unity” in the confrontation with Russia. He also claimed the Slovak secret services should investigate Fico for corruption.

The TurkStream pipeline was launched in January 2020 and has an annual capacity of 31.5 billion cubic meters. Its underwater section extends for around 930km, while the Russkaya station serves as the point of exit on Russian soil. One of the pipeline’s two strings serves Turkish customers, while the other leads to consumers in Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Greece. Russian officials have accused Kiev of attempts to sabotage the energy link on multiple occasions in recent years.

January 13, 2025 Posted by | Militarism | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slovakia faces energy crisis by next winter after Ukraine shut off Russian gas, president warns

By Thomas Brooke | Remix News | January 10, 2025

Slovakia faces a looming energy crisis next winter unless an alternative method of gas importation is established, following the cessation of supplies through Ukraine, Slovak President Peter Pellegrini warned on Friday.

Speaking in the village of Nemecká, Pellegrini highlighted the gravity of the situation and called for urgent solutions to secure the nation’s energy stability.

While gas supplies for this winter are stable in terms of price and capacity, Pellegrini emphasized the underlying vulnerabilities. “We are currently consuming more gas than we are receiving, relying heavily on reservoirs filled to maximum capacity earlier this year,” he said. However, the president expressed concern that these reserves would not suffice for the next heating season if the supply deficit is not addressed.

The gas supply disruption stems from Ukraine’s decision on Jan. 1 to halt the transit of Russian gas to Slovakia. Kyiv justified the move as a measure to cut off revenue that could support Russia’s ongoing war effort, asserting that alternative suppliers had been made available and supplies to the European Union had been maintained. The move has enraged some member states heavily reliant on the gas route.

Pellegrini lamented the failure to reach a compromise with Ukraine, saying, “I regret that an agreement could not be found. Ukraine’s decision to shut off the gas has exposed Slovakia to a serious challenge in the coming months.”

The Slovak president revealed the challenges of importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from other countries, citing limited capacity at European terminals. “The import of LNG runs into significant bottlenecks in northern and southern Europe. These terminals cannot fully replace the current shortfall,” he noted, stressing the urgency of finding alternative sources to make up for the lost capacity.

Prime Minister Robert Fico, speaking after discussions with EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen on Thursday, hinted at retaliatory measures should the situation persist. Fico suggested that Slovakia might cut off aid to Ukraine and use its veto in the European Council to block further EU support for Ukraine’s war effort.

“There is nothing — neither international law nor sanctions — that prevents the transit of gas through Ukraine,” Fico stated in Brussels. He also warned of the broader implications for the European Union, noting that rising energy prices could undermine the bloc’s competitiveness. “If the damage to the EU and Slovakia becomes permanent, we will take reciprocal measures,” he added.

January 10, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Russophobia | , , | Leave a comment

Slovakia threatens to block Ukraine aid over gas transit dispute – media

RT | January 10, 2025

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has warned that Bratislava may block the European Union’s financial and humanitarian aid to Kiev if the cessation of Russian gas transit through Ukraine is not resolved, Reuters has reported. Fico made the statement after talks with EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen on Thursday.

Fico cited potential losses from the blocked transit as the reason for his threat.

“There is nothing – not international law or sanctions – that prevents the transit of gas through Ukraine,” Fico told reporters in Brussels, as quoted by Reuters.

Slovakia has seen the complete cessation of Russian gas flows via Ukraine, a route that previously provided Bratislava with significant transit fees and also provided the gas for its domestic consumption.

According to Fico, Slovakia stands to lose $515 million annually in transit fees and could face an additional $1 billion in increased gas prices due to the disruption.

“If this problem is not resolved, the government of the Slovak Republic will take strict reciprocal measures in the near future,” Fico said.

The prime minister outlined potential retaliatory measures, including exercising Slovakia’s veto power within the European Union on Ukraine-related issues.

He also threatened to suspend humanitarian aid to Ukraine, scaling back support for Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia, and halting emergency electricity supplies to the country.

Fico’s remarks follow recent discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, during which the Slovak leader secured assurances of direct gas supplies to Slovakia despite the transit halt.

A meeting initially scheduled between Slovak, Ukrainian, and European Commission officials to address the gas transit issue was canceled after Ukraine declined to participate. Slovakia and the European Commission have since agreed to form a working group to assess the crisis and explore potential EU interventions.

Ukraine has not yet publicly responded to Fico’s latest statements. When the Slovak PM first threatened to cut off electricity to Kiev last month, Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko said he didn’t think that Bratislava would go through with the threat.

Slovakia, which has a contract with Russia’s Gazprom, requires between 4 billion and 5 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas annually to meet its energy needs. Prior to the transit halt, it had been receiving around 3 billion bcm from Russia through Ukraine. In response to the disruption, SPP, Slovakia’s state-owned gas company, is now sourcing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from international suppliers, including BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, Eni, and RWE.

January 10, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Russophobia | , , | Leave a comment

Uncle Sam and Banderite bandits destroy Europe while Euro lackeys hail liberation

Strategic Culture Foundation | January 3, 2025

This new year began with a new era that presages Europe sliding irrevocably into economic darkness and abject suzerainty under U.S. dominance.

Uncle Sam has won a decades-long ambition to dominate Europe entirely, thanks to the help from a NeoNazi regime in Ukraine and the pathetic European politicians who hail the slavery of Europe as some liberation.

The people of Europe are facing a foreboding period of economic hardship. We can confidently say that because the most fundamental of economic inputs – fuel energy – is about to become more expensive and precariously supplied for the European Union.

Russia’s decades-long energy relations with Europe are now severed. It seems an astounding final act of reckless self-harm. The European Union’s economies have been floundering from an energy crisis caused by EU leaders willfully cutting off supplies of Russian gas. Now, with the last major transit route shut down, Europe is heading toward economic, social, and political self-destruction.

On Wednesday, New Year’s Day, the Ukrainian regime cut off the last supply route of Russian gas to the European Union. This regime, which glorifies Stepan Bandera and other Nazi-era fascists, is, in effect, holding the entire European Union hostage with its Russophobia and relentless corruption.

The arrogance and audacity are astonishing. The Ukrainian regime does not have an elected leader (Zelensky canceled elections last year), it is not a member of the EU, it has milked European taxpayers of hundreds of billions of Euros, and now has unilaterally shut down the last gas pipeline from Russia to the EU.

Ironically, the pipeline was called the Brotherhood Pipeline. It was conceived in the 1970s and began operating in the 1980s, carrying natural gas from Russia’s Western Siberia to the EU. Ukraine received generous transit fees for the overland route. The decades-long era of transcontinental cooperation was killed on December 31 by a Banderite regime that has the cheek to claim its actions are virtuous to “stop Russian blood money”.

Incredibly, too, various European leaders also hailed the Ukrainian action as a liberation from Russian energy dependence. Some Western media even tried to cast Moscow as the villain that instigated the cut-off. The New York-based Council on Foreign Relations, for example, inverted reality with the headline: “Russia ends exports of natural gas to Europe via Ukraine”.

To his credit, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico seems to be the only sane leader among the EU’s 27 member states. He condemned what he called Ukraine’s “sabotage” of Europe’s energy supply and its economies. Fico warned that the European Union is facing a full-blown economic disaster as a result.

The Ukraine transit route supplied Slovakia, Austria, Italy and the Czech Republic. Now, those countries will have to find alternative supplies from international markets. The Ukrainian route also supplied Moldova, which is facing an immediate energy crisis. Russia claims that the Moldavian government owes outstanding bills for past gas supply.

The Brotherhood Pipeline harks back to an era of friendship and cooperation even though it was conceived during the Cold War between the West and the Soviet Union. The 4,500-kilometer pipeline was partly financed by German capital.

Another ambitious Cold War-era supply route was the Yamal Pipeline, which ran over 4,100 km from Siberia to Poland and Germany. Its operation was halted in 2022 by Poland following the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine.

The more recently constructed Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines that ran 1,200 km under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany were blown up in 2022. That covert act of sabotage was no doubt carried out by the United States under the orders of President Joe Biden, according to the respected investigative journalist Seymour Hersh.

The upshot is that all major Russian natural gas supply lines to Europe have now been terminated. The only one remaining is Turk Stream which runs under the Black Sea to Turkey. But it mainly supplies Balkan countries that are not in the EU.

In the space of two years, Russia has gone from being the major supplier of EU gas imports (over 40 percent) to being a minor source. The big winner of the phenomenal market disruption is the United States, whose exports of liquefied natural gas to the EU have tripled. Another winner is Norway, which is not an EU member. Other sources of gas for Europe are Azerbaijan and Algeria.

However, the unprecedented extra costs to Europe for this enormous rearrangement in its energy trade are encumbering the EU economies, industries and households with crippling burdens. New pipelines have to be built, as well as new terminals to receive the shipped gas. U.S. exports cost 30 to 40 percent more than the Russian product.

The slump in the German economy from higher energy costs is directly caused by the cutting off of abundant and affordable Russian gas. And it is going to get even worse. The grim fate of Germany heralds the economic misery that the whole EU is sliding headlong into.

The history of Europe’s economic demise is as obvious as it is blatant.

Of course, it is all about the United States using and abusing its Western “allies” for its own interests. For Western imperialists, there is no such thing as allies, only interests. And the Americans are exacting that maxim to the hilt.

For decades, the U.S. has vehemently opposed the energy trade between the EU and Russia. Back in the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan’s administration tried its best to block the development of the Brotherhood Pipeline with threats of economic sanctions. The Americans openly said they didn’t want to see Europe and the Soviet Union developing cooperative relations.

At least in earlier times, the European governments appeared to have more independence and backbone. Germany, France, Italy and others rebuffed Washington’s demands to shut down the gas projects.

The long-running strategic aim of the U.S. to displace Russia as an energy supplier to Europe has now been realized. It’s a sign of the desperate times and lawlessness that American military operatives attack European infrastructure.

The blowing up of the Nord Stream pipelines and the proxy war in Ukraine have secured the strategic aim of the U.S. and its NATO proxy – keeping the Germans (Europeans) down, the Americans in, and the Russians out.

So much for the free-market capitalism and rules-based order that American and European elites preach. The practice is brute economic competition and dominance down the barrel of a gun. Millions of lives have been destroyed in this “great game” of American imperialist chicanery, and the proxy war in Ukraine is risking the escalation to a nuclear Third World War.

The Banderite regime – an echo of the Nazi past – has enabled the United States to enslave Europe to Washington’s imperialist desires.

Tragically, a coterie of elitist European political leaders are so obsessed with Russophobia and servility to their American overlord that they are crowing with delight at cutting off Russia.

Russia will not suffer. Its vast energy resources are finding alternative lucrative global markets. The victims are the European citizens who are being plunged into wretched economic hardship due to the machinations of American capital, its Banderite tools, and Euro fools.

January 4, 2025 Posted by | Economics, Russophobia | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slovak PM slams ‘irrational’ EU

RT | December 30, 2024

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has sent an open letter to European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, urging immediate action to address Ukraine’s imminent halt of natural gas transit through its territory to the EU.

A transit agreement between Russia and Ukraine is set to expire on December 31. Kiev has refused to extend it, citing the conflict with Moscow.

In a letter posted on Facebook on Sunday, Fico accused Kiev of failing to consider the potential impact its decision will have on the EU economy. Brussels’ acceptance of the situation is “absolutely irrational and wrong,” he stressed.

Gas transit through Ukraine accounts for only 3.5% of EU consumption, the letter states, citing an analysis carried out by Slovakia’s main gas supplier and trader, SPP. Despite the modest share, any halt would disrupt the market, raising gas prices by roughly 30%, the document claims. Such a price spike would translate to an additional annual cost of € 40-50 billion for European households and infrastructure, Fico argued.

“It is in the interest of all EU citizens that European efforts to support Ukraine should be carried out rationally, and not in the form of self-destructive and extremely damaging gestures,” the Slovak prime minister noted. Kiev’s decision will lead to “reciprocal measures,” he warned.

Fico also said Russia “will easily place such a small volume of gas in other markets,” thus mitigating its losses.

The situation requires urgent attention from EU institutions and member states to mitigate risks of supply shortages, he added.

Landlocked Slovakia’s position within Europe’s energy network makes it highly susceptible to disruptions in natural gas supply. The country is reliant on Russia for around 85% of its gas demand, primarily through pipelines transiting Ukraine.

Fico has repeatedly voiced concerns regarding EU energy policy. He has consistently advocated for pragmatic approaches to energy security, often clashing with Brussels on its approach to the Ukraine conflict, namely the issue of military support to Kiev and the issue of economic sanctions against Russia.

European Union leaders have repeatedly expressed confidence in the bloc’s ability to manage without Russian gas, accusing Moscow of using energy as a geopolitical weapon.

The European Commission and Council have yet to issue formal responses to the Slovak leader’s letter.

December 30, 2024 Posted by | Economics, Russophobia | , , | Leave a comment

Major Winners and Losers of Halting Russian Gas Transit Through Ukraine

By Ekaterina Blinova – Sputnik – 29.12.2024

As the Ukraine gas transit contract with Russia is set to end, Ukraine’s largest private energy company DTEK received its first delivery of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US on December 27.

Winners

US LNG producers:

  • The halting of Russia’s gas deliveries through Ukraine will increase the US share and reduce competition in the EU market.
  • The latest US LNG delivery amounts to 100 million cubic meters of gas (1 TWh of energy, or 3,530,000 MMBtu), bought by D.Trading, DTEK’s pan-European trading subsidiary. The shipment arrived at Greek LNG terminals such as Revithoussa, where it will be “re-gasified” and distributed “through EU and Ukrainian gas networks,” according to DTEK. One network, the Vertical Corridor, will transmit US LNG deliveries between Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
  • LNG from the US for Europe is at least 30-40% more expensive than pipeline gas from Russia.
  • In December 2022, the US became the world’s leading exporter of LNG amid Europe’s energy crisis and the sabotage attack on Russia’s Nord Stream pipelines.

Losers

  • Ukraine: Ukraine will lose almost $1 billion annually from Russian gas transit fees. Additionally, Ukraine is likely to pay more for US LNG coming through the Revithoussa LNG terminal than for Russian pipeline gas, which used to come in the form of a “virtual reverse.”
  • Hungary, Austria, and Slovakia which have long relied on Russian gas transit through Ukraine, will face challenges. Being landlocked, access to LNG delivered to marine terminals is costly and difficult. Long-term contracts with Russia’s Gazprom allowed them to buy natural gas considerably cheaper than EU gas spot prices. For instance, Austria had been receiving Russian gas at a price almost three times cheaper than EU spot prices in 2022, according to Reuters.
  • European Union: After sliding to $11.79/MMBtu in October, European gas prices rose to almost $15/MMBtu on November 22. On December 27, benchmark futures rose further by 5% on the news of halted Russian gas transit through Ukraine. Stopping the supply of Russian gas through Ukraine will cost Europe around $125 billion in total losses in 2025-2026, according to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.

December 29, 2024 Posted by | Economics, Russophobia | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slovakia threatens Ukraine with power cuts

RT | December 28, 2024

Slovakia could cut electricity supplies to Ukraine if Kiev stops transporting Russian gas to EU nations, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said.

The Central European country, whose economy heavily relies on Russian gas, receives its supplies through Ukrainian territory via Soviet-era pipelines. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmigal announced earlier this month that, starting from 2025, Kiev will stop transporting Russian gas and will only use its pipeline system to deliver gas from alternative suppliers. The current contract with Moscow expires on December 31, with Kiev stating that it would not renew the deal.

“After January 1, we will assess the situation and potential reciprocal measures against Ukraine,” Fico said in a video message on Facebook. “If necessary, we will stop supplying electricity that Ukraine urgently needs during network outages.” He added that Bralistava could consider other retaliatory steps.

“Stopping the transit of Russian natural gas through Ukraine is not just a hollow political gesture. It’s an extremely costly move, one that we, in the European Union, will pay for,” Fico said.

He wrote on Facebook that, by scrapping the transit deal, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky “will cause billions worth of damages to the EU, including the Slovak Republic, and there will be a further reduction of the EU’s competitiveness.”

Ukrainian officials have criticized Fico for his recent trip to Moscow, arguing that the “pro-Russian” stance of Slovakia and Hungary are damaging the EU’s reputation and undermining the bloc’s resolve to help Kiev.

Russian President Vladimir Putin argued this week that by terminating the transit deal Ukraine was “punishing” EU countries, as the continent continues to battle the energy crisis.

“We have always stood for [energy] supplies, for the depoliticization of economic issues. We have never refused supplies to Europe,” Putin said.

Kiev has so far not responded to potential sanctions from Slovakia. Bloomberg cited a person familiar with the matter as saying that Ukraine’s “counter-move” could be halting the transport of Russian oil to Slovakia.

December 28, 2024 Posted by | Economics | , , | Leave a comment

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