€90 billion for Druzhba pipeline repairs: EU may unblock Ukraine loan within days
Photo: Ursula von der Leyen (Getty Images)
After Ukraine agreed to repair the Druzhba oil pipeline, the issue of a €90 billion loan for Kyiv could be resolved before the European Council meeting on March 19–20, stated European Commission chief spokesperson Paula Pinho during a briefing in Brussels.
"With regard to the loan, the very important consequential loan for Ukraine, the discussions continue, and we hope and are confident that we could see some progress in these discussions soon. Ideally, it would be before the European Council(on 19-20 March – ed.)," she said.
Pinho noted that the European Commission welcomed Kyiv’s agreement to accept the financial and technical support offered by the EU.
She added that experts are ready to travel to Ukraine to ensure that all necessary work is carried out and that oil supplies are restored.
What preceded this
Today, March 17, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that Ukraine had accepted the EU’s proposal for financial and technical assistance to restore the Druzhba pipeline.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that repair work on the bypass line is nearing completion. According to him, the Brody pumping station will regain technical functionality in about a month and a half.
Full flows are expected to resume around the same time, provided, as the Ukrainian President noted, that Russia does not carry out new strikes.
€90 billion EU loan
EU leaders agreed on the loan back in December 2025, but an additional bill must be adopted for the final disbursement. It is blocked by Budapest and Bratislava.
Orbán has been stalling the process over the suspension of Russian oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline. Ukraine has said the disruption was caused by Russian strikes, while Hungary and Slovakia refer to satellite imagery and are demanding an inspection of the facility.
As Budapest continues this obstruction, Ukraine risks being left without funding as early as spring.
Later, on March 5, Zelenskyy said he would give the address of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Ukrainian soldiers if Budapest continued to block the €90 billion loan.
On Wednesday, March 11, a Hungarian delegation led by State Secretary of the Ministry of Energy Gábor Czepek arrived in Kyiv for talks on the pipeline.
At the same time, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry stressed that the Hungarian representatives did not have official delegation status and had entered the country as ordinary tourists under the visa-free regime.
