Ukraine-Hungary oil pipeline row threatens EU loan

Kyiv and Budapest disagree on how badly damaged a hub in western Ukraine bombed by Russia really is, as its oil flow remains suspended.

Oil flows to Hungary and Slovakia via Russia’s Druzhba pipeline have been halted after a Russian airstrike damaged the conduit on Ukrainian territory, leaving the two landlocked EU states scrambling for alternative routes for Russian crude despite Brussels’ ban on seaborne imports.

Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Russian oil supplies were temporarily suspended via the Druzhba oil pipeline, a key supply route for much of central Europe, following large-scale Ukrainian drone strikes overnight.

Hungary has blocked the €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine, accusing Kyiv of political blackmail and collusion with Brussels. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Ukraine is deliberately halting crude oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline, claiming there is no technical reason to stop deliveries.