Zelensky accuses Slovak PM of wanting to 'help Putin'

KIEV

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico of wanting to "help" President Vladimir Putin by continuing to import Russian gas.

Zelensky said EU leaders had observed that Fico, who visited Moscow on Dec. 22, opposes reducing energy dependence on Russia, "implying that he wants to help Putin earn money to fund the war and weaken Europe."

"We believe that such assistance to Putin is immoral," he wrote on social media platform X.

Slovakia relies heavily on Russian gas and has raised concerns about the prospect of losing supplies after a contract for gas transit through Ukraine expires on Dec. 31.

Ukraine has made it clear it will not renew the contract with Russia.

"We offered him solutions regarding potential compensation for Slovaks, the Slovaks specifically, for losses from Russian transit, as well as alternatives for transit, any other gas, not Russian, at the request of the European Commission," Zelensky said of the Slovak leader on X.

"Fico did not want compensation for the Slovaks. And he does not want to cooperate with the European Commission."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Dec. 23: "This is a very difficult situation which requires increased attention."

Fico is one of the few European leaders Putin has stayed friendly with since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The visit by Fico, whose country is a NATO and European Union member, had not been previously announced.

In a statement posted on his Facebook account after the talks, Fico said the meeting was "in response to" Zelensky opposing any "transit of gas through Ukraine to our territory."

Fico said Putin had confirmed Russia's "readiness... to continue to supply gas to the West and to Slovakia, which is practically impossible after 1 January 2025," but did not elaborate.

Both leaders also exchanged views on the conflict in Ukraine and "the possibility of an early peaceful end" to it, he said.

Meanwhile, a Russian court on Dec. 24 sentenced a U.S. man to 15 years in a penal colony for "espionage," Russian news agencies reported.

Russia has detained and sentenced a number of U.S. citizens and dual nationals in recent years, some of whom have been freed in prisoner exchanges.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted of espionage in July and released in August.

Moscow City Court sentenced the man, named as Gene Spector, to "15 years to be served in a strict-regime penal colony," taking into account a sentence the defendant had already received for bribery, RIA Novosti state news agency reported.

No details of the accusation against him have been released.

The trial, except for the sentencing, took place behind closed doors due to the secret nature of the case, news agencies reported.