Slovakia requests to postpone the vote, the European Union failed to reach an agreement on the 18th round of sanctions against Russia.

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Karas, expressed his regret on the 15th local time that an agreement on the 18th round of sanctions against Russia was not reached that day. The EU and Slovakia were very close to reaching an agreement. Karas stated that he still hopes that the EU will reach an agreement on the 18th round of sanctions against Russia the next day. On July 15th local time, Slovak Prime Minister Fico made a statement on his personal social media about the EU's guarantee of natural gas supply to Slovakia after 2028, saying that domestic parties in Slovakia believe that the European Commission's guarantee to Slovakia is insufficient, even non-existent. The ruling coalition refuses to accept the European Commission's proposal to stop Russian natural gas supply from 2028 onwards but is ready to negotiate to ensure Slovakia's natural gas supply after 2028. Considering the attitude of the Slovak political arena, Slovak representatives have been instructed to postpone the vote on the 18th round of sanctions against Russia that day. The best solution to this issue is to grant Slovakia an exemption to fulfill its contract with Gazprom until 2034, but the European Commission currently rejects this proposal in principle because it would undermine the essence of anti-Russian sanctions.