Fico was unable to fly to Brussels for the "gas negotiations" due to a failure in the air traffic control system.

As reported by Ukrinform, this information comes from Euronews.

Last night, Belgian airspace was closed due to a technical issue with the air traffic control computer system Skeyes.

The airspace closure lasted just over an hour. During this time, flights were unable to take off or land at any of the country's main airports.

It was noted that the system failure also forced a plane carrying Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to turn around and head back home.

Fico was flying to Brussels for a scheduled gas meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen.

It was reported that a previous similar meeting between Robert Fico and Dan Jørgensen took place on January 9 of this year.

The transit contract for transporting Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine's gas transportation system is set to expire on December 31, 2024. This event sparked a strong reaction from Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, who on December 27 of last year, following a trip to Moscow, threatened retaliatory actions in response to Ukraine's cessation of Russian gas transit.

Photo: EPA/UPG