Slovakia wants exemption, Germany won't oppose ban on Russian oil

Slovakia’s Energy Minister says, the country is not ready to join a European Union embargo on imports of Russian oil as part of a new package of sanctions to be imposed on Russia for its military action. Slovakia is almost fully dependent of Russian oil it receives through the Soviet-era Druzhba pipeline. Economy Minister Richard Sulik told reporters today that the sole Slovak refiner, Slovnaft, cannot immediately switch from Russian crude to any different oil. To change the technology would take several years, he said. European Union leaders are debating new proposals for sanctions, which could include a phased-in embargo on oil. European Union Energy Ministers gathered in Brussels for an emergency meeting to discuss oil imports from Russia and seek a common response to Moscow cutting gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria. In the biggest shift, Germany announced it would no longer oppose an immediate ban on Russian oil imports.
Russia supplies the EU with 26 percent of its oil imports. The share of Russia's gas is even more than 40 percent of the bloc's gas imports come from Russia and several countries, including Germany, are heavily reliant on the energy source. According to media reports, the European bloc is moving closer to banning Russian oil, with Germany changing course to support the embargo. The Kremlin cut gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria last week after the two refused to bend to Moscow's demand that pays for fuel supplies in Russian roubles. On Monday, the European Commission warned that complying with the scheme in full would be a breach of existing sanction