Overview
- Slovakia, which reported flows resuming at 2 a.m. Thursday, ended a near three‑month halt that followed a January strike on the pipeline’s Ukrainian section.
- The restart meets the condition Hungary and Slovakia set for backing the EU’s €90 billion loan to Ukraine, with EU diplomats calling the pipeline the final hurdle.
- Brussels began written approval steps for the financing after deliveries were verified to Slovakia, according to officials and press reports.
- Slovakia’s foreign minister told the country’s EU envoy not to block the 20th Russia sanctions package if oil keeps arriving without interruption and in agreed volumes.
- Prime Minister Robert Fico said Slovakia expects 13,500 metric tons of crude Thursday and 119,000 tons by the end of April, while diplomats cautioned technical issues could still arise.