Slovakia will stop blocking the approval of the 18th package of European Union sanctions against Russia on Friday, Prime Minister Robert Fico said.

Slovakia accepted guarantees from the European Union’s executive arm to limit the fallout from a planned cutoff of Russian gas supplies and, in exchange, will lift its veto on the bloc’s 18th sanctions package against Moscow.

The European Union is on the cusp of agreeing on an 18th sanctions package against Russia, focusing on a lower price cap on Russian oil. The package aims to curb Russia's revenue from oil and includes a dynamic price mechanism.