Robert Fico

Slovakia will send representatives to Moscow next week to discuss supplies of Russian gas and oil, resuming an energy cooperation process that was suspended after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The move is being read as a sign of deepening divisions within Europe over continued energy ties with Moscow, and comes as Slovakia's government under Robert Fico has already clashed with Kyiv and Brussels over Russia policy.

Slovakia says it will restart consultations with Russia, a move that sets it apart from European Union allies who have largely frozen diplomatic contacts with Moscow since the invasion of Ukraine. The decision adds to Prime Minister Robert Fico's pattern of diverging from EU positions on Russia, drawing criticism from other member states and prompting debate over unity in EU foreign policy.