The European Commission has reiterated that the European Union is prepared for the potential halt of Russian gas transit through Ukraine starting January 1, 2025. The Commission confirmed that alternative supply routes for non-Russian gas are available.

This statement was made on Tuesday in Brussels, responding to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico's open letter dated December 29 to European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, urging immediate action following Ukraine's decision to stop gas transit to Europe.

"The stop of flow via Ukraine on 1 January is the expected situation and the EU is prepared for it. The Commission, in coordination with the Member States, has been working for more than a year specifically on preparing for a scenario without Russian gas transiting via Ukraine as of 1 January 2025 and on ensuring that alternative supplies are available for the impacted Member States," the Commission stated.

Additionally, the European Commission noted that the EU's gas infrastructure is flexible enough to provide gas of non-Russian origin to Central and Eastern Europe via alternative routes. "It has been reinforced with significant new LNG import capacities since 2022. Security of gas supply architecture of the EU has been reinforced in the last couple of years, including with energy efficiency measures and renewables development," the Commission detailed.

The European Council has yet to provide a comment on the matter.

Earlier, in response to Ukraine's decision to halt Russian gas transit, part of which supplies Slovakia, Prime Minister Fico threatened to cut electricity deliveries to Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suggested that "it seems Putin has instructed Fico to open a second energy front against Ukraine at the expense of the Slovak people."

Slovakia's Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs rejected these accusations on December 30, issuing a statement on the social platform X: ""The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic is closely monitoring the statements from the Ukrainian side regarding remarks made by the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico. These reactions are perceived as exaggerated. We firmly reject any unfounded claims about the opening of a 'second energy front,' as speculated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as fabricated accusations of any alliance with Vladimir Putin."

The statement further emphasized that the Slovak government has a duty to defend primarily the strategic interests of Slovakia, its citizens, and the European Union: " It will act accordingly, regardless of whether the Ukrainian side approves or not..."