MOSCOW (Reuters) – Slovak Deputy Speaker of Parliament Andrej Danko arrived in Moscow on Sunday, Russian state-run TASS news agency reported, as Bratislava seeks a solution following Ukraine’s decision to halt Russian gas pipeline deliveries to Europe.
Danko’s visit, planned before the gas dispute, will continue until Wednesday, TASS and Slovak news agency TASR reported.
On Friday, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said that Russian President Vladimir Putin promised that Russia’s state gas company Gazprom would find alternative ways to deliver contracted gas to Slovakia after the end of transit through Ukraine.
Ukraine, which has been at war with Russia since Moscow’s 2022 invasion, refused to renew a transit deal with Russia as it seeks to cut revenues going to Moscow to fund the war.
TASS cited recent statements of Danko and others in the delegation as saying they wanted to discuss investments in the West and also gas issues with the representatives of the Russian lower house of parliament – the Duma.
According to TASS, the Slovak delegation is scheduled to meet Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the Duma, on Monday and the head of the upper house of parliament, Valentina Matviyenko, on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov and Jason Hovet; Editing by David Goodman/Guy Faulconbridge)
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