Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár will fly to Moscow on Sunday, 25 October, where on Monday he will lead the Slovak delegation at a session of the intergovernmental economic commission with Russia. According to the Slovak Foreign Ministry in Bratislava, the main topic will be the country’s energy security.
According to a statement from the Slovak Foreign Ministry, cited by PAP and the Slovak agency TASR, Blanár will travel to Russia on Sunday evening. On Monday, 26 October, he will head the delegation at the 22nd session of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic and Scientific-Technical Cooperation. The commission is co-chaired by Russian Minister of Science and Higher Education Valery Falkov.
Six Areas of Talks
Expert talks are to cover six areas: energy, nuclear energy, agriculture, environmental protection, tourism, and sport and culture. The delegation includes, among others, State Secretary at the Ministry of Economy Vladimír Šimoňák and representatives of the foreign affairs, economy, environment, agriculture, culture and tourism ministries.
The Foreign Ministry in Bratislava stresses that the goal is “to establish a framework for cooperation in line with the commitments” Slovakia has as an EU member. The government says it wants to develop cooperation in sectors not covered by EU sanctions.
Gas and the “Iron Curtain”
“The absolute priority with which I am going to Moscow is Slovakia’s energy security,” Blanár said in the statement. He added that the country opposes “building a new iron curtain” between the EU and Russia and wants to maintain open contacts even in a difficult period.
The minister recalled that, under a European Commission decision, Slovakia is to stop receiving Russian gas in September 2027. At the same time, a contract with Russia for supplies of this commodity is binding on Slovakia until 2034. As he put it, the sum involved is over 10 billion euros. “Although we disagree with the war in Ukraine and clearly state that Russia has violated international law, we must talk to it and protect Slovak interests,” he argued.
In Moscow, Blanár is also set to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. He wants to obtain information on peace initiatives that could end the war in Ukraine as quickly as possible. Lavrov and Blanár had already met earlier, including on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September 2025, as the Russian Foreign Ministry reported.
Opposition Criticism
The planned trip has sparked controversy in Slovakia. As AFP reported in a text published by Arab News, the opposition compared it to “treason” and warned of risks to the country’s and the EU’s intelligence security. Prime Minister Robert Fico had spoken about the trip earlier.
What It Means
For readers in Poland, this is above all a signal about the direction of the government in Bratislava: a country bordering Poland, and a member of the EU and NATO, wants to maintain economic contacts with Moscow and gas supplies until 2034, despite the EU plan to phase out Russian energy. The trip does not for now change EU sanctions or the decision to phase out Russian gas. As of publication, no results of the talks or reaction from the European Commission have been reported.
