Russia carrying out oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia, working to ensure they continue - Novak
MOSCOW. July 23 (Interfax) - Russia is currently supplying oil to Hungary and Slovakia, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told reporters, commenting on the halt in oil supplies by Lukoil along the southern branch of the Druzhba oil pipeline through Ukraine due to the latter's sanctions against the oil company.
"Deliveries are currently being carried out," Novak said, without specifying whether they were being made by some other route.
"I don't want to comment," he said.
"Supplies are currently being carried out. We are working to make sure that they continue, and that our partners, who have been receiving oil through Druzhba, continue to receive it," Novak said.
He said Russia was keen to supply energy. "Particularly given that Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic have never turned them down. We will supply them," Novak said.
As reported, Hungary and Slovakia stopped receiving pipeline oil from Lukoil shipped via the Druzhba pipeline due to a transit ban imposed by Ukraine. Kiev tightened sanctions on Lukoil last month, thus effectively banning oil transport to Central Europe across Ukraine via the Druzhba pipeline. Lukoil is a major crude supplier to Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Monday that this step "is in breach of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreements, which prohibits interrupting the transit of energy resources." Hungary and Slovakia have jointly asked the European Commission to start consultations. If this issue is not resolved, it may be referred to an arbitration court, a move that may affect the EU-Ukraine Association Agreemen," Szijjarto said.
"We initiated, together with Slovakia, this consultation procedure because this an urgent matter, because energy supply is an acute problem. The EU has three days to hold consultations," Szijjarto said.
For now the situation has been stabilized with "temporary solutions," but in the long run it will be impossible to ensure the security of oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia without Lukoil, he said.