Druzhba oil pipeline restored and may restart work, Zelenskyy states
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
"Ukraine has carried out repair works on a section of the Druzhba oil pipeline that was damaged by a Russian strike. The pipeline can resume operations," he emphasized.
The president noted that at present, no one can guarantee that Russia will not strike the pipeline infrastructure again. He stressed that Ukrainian specialists have ensured the basic conditions for restoring the operation of the pipeline system and equipment.
"We are linking this to the unblocking of the European support package for Ukraine, which has already been approved by the European Council," Zelenskyy added.
Druzhba and the EU loan
At the end of 2025, European leaders agreed to provide Ukraine with a €90 billion loan. However, after Russia damaged the Druzhba pipeline, Hungary blocked the loan.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said he would unblock the loan only after oil supplies are restored.
The victory of Hungarian opposition leader Péter Magyar of the Tisza Party does not automatically mean the unblocking of the €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine.
At the same time, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico supported Hungary’s position and threatened to also block future loans to Ukraine, although responsibility for the damage to Druzhba lies with Russia.
