The Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, emphasized that his country’s position regarding the Druzhba pipeline remains unchanged even after Ukraine’s decision to allow European specialists to inspect the condition of the pipeline, which was damaged as a result of Russian missile attacks.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Hungary’s conditions for unblocking funding
In his address, Orban highlighted that Budapest will not change its approach to unblocking oil transit through Druzhba, and the payment of financial support to Ukraine, according to him, directly depends on the restoration of the pipeline’s operation. The politician clarified that he conveyed this position to the President of the European Council and the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, during a recent conversation.
“If there is no oil, then there is no money. A few minutes ago, I discussed with the President of the European Council and the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, the Ukrainian oil blockade. I told them that Hungary’s position is unchanged: if President Zelensky wants to receive his money from Brussels, he must reopen the Druzhba pipeline,” Orban said in a video address
He also suggested that the issue of the oil blockade is being used to influence the elections in Hungary in favor of the opposition party, Tisza.
EU and Ukraine: next steps
From the European Union’s side, it was confirmed that on March 17, a phone conversation took place between the leadership of the European Commission, the European Council, and Viktor Orban. During this conversation, the necessity of adhering to the commitments made within the European Council was emphasized, as well as the importance of restoring the flow of oil through Druzhba.
The European Commission expressed hope that the issue of unblocking the €90 billion loan for Ukraine will be resolved soon, likely before the EU leaders’ summit scheduled for March 19–20.
On March 17, the President of Ukraine addressed the heads of the European Commission and the EU Council with a letter informing them of his readiness to allow European experts to inspect the pipeline after Russian shelling, as well as to accept EU assistance in repairing the infrastructure. According to the head of state, the restoration work is nearing completion, and full restoration of Druzhba will take about another month and a half.
The EU is currently deciding which European experts will go to Ukraine to inspect the damaged section of the pipeline. It is emphasized that the selected specialist will not be a representative of either Hungary or Slovakia to ensure an unbiased assessment.
EU diplomats previously noted that the issue of unblocking the €90 billion loan for Ukraine, which is currently blocked by Hungary, is linked to the restoration of the Druzhba pipeline’s operation or at least to allowing European experts to conduct its inspection.