Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico pledged to improve ties with Russia if the conflict in Ukraine ends during his term in office, while talking to reporters during a press conference on Thursday.

"If the war will end during this government's mandate, I'll do everything possible for the renewal of economic and standard relations with the Russian Federation," Fico said.

The Slovak prime minister also stressed that 'every war ends at the negotiating table', adding that both the EU and Russia would benefit from normalising relations. "We've said a thousand times, that this has no military solution."

"The European Union needs the Russian Federation, and the Russian Federation needs the European Union" he added.

His remarks come ahead of a joint meeting scheduled for Monday between the Slovak and Ukrainian governments. Slovakia will reportedly urge Ukraine to remain a stable transit route for Russian gas.

Fico also stated that his government has been under 'pressure' from Brussels to cease purchasing gas and oil from Moscow.

Kiev imposed tightened sanctions against Russia's Lukoil oil company, effectively banning oil transport to Central Europe via Ukraine's Druzhba pipeline. Lukoil is the largest supplier of oil to both Bratislava and Budapest. Ukraine has not explained why the company in particular was targeted. Hungarian oil and gas group MOL subsequently struck a deal to take ownership of crude oil at the Belarus-Ukraine border and allow the transit.