Hungary demands Ukraine restart Druzhba oil transit within 3 days
Photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (Getty Images)
The Hungarian government has given Ukraine three days to resume the transit of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline and to allow inspectors access, according to Gábor Czepek, state secretary at the Hungarian Ministry of Energy.
"A message has been sent to the Ukrainian government demanding that it resume pipeline operations within three days and allow an inspection of the Brody station, which pumps oil," Czepek says.
Ukraine-Hungary tensions
Hungary blocked the allocation of a €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine, demanding the resumption of Russian oil transit through the Druzhba pipeline.
Budapest promised to lift the veto only after the resumption of supplies, arguing that this was a violation of the Association Agreement.
According to Western media reports, Ukraine may be left without funding as early as this spring because of this.
Yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he would give the address of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers if Budapest blocked the €90 billion loan.
In response, Orbán said he considered these words a threat not to him personally, but to the whole of Hungary.
The Hungarian Prime Minister once again accused Ukraine of allegedly blocking oil supplies through the Druzhba pipeline and threatened to resume its operation by force.
In his statement, he stressed that there would be no compromises and that he intended to break the Ukrainian oil blockade by force.
Today, it became known that two cars of the Ukrainian Oschadbank cash collection service, accompanied by seven employees of the cash collection team, were unjustifiably detained in Hungary while carrying out a regular transport of foreign currency and gold between Raiffeisen Bank Austria and Oschadbank Ukraine.
The vehicles, which were transporting $40 million, €35 million, and 9 kilograms of gold, were located with the assistance of representatives of the Ukrainian Embassy in Budapest and the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
At the same time, the fate of seven Oschadbank employees who were accompanying the cash transport vehicles remains unknown.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that Ukraine will appeal to the European Union for a clear qualification of Hungary's illegal actions, hostage-taking, and robbery.
