Zelenskyy: Ukraine will complete Druzhba repairs this spring
Photo: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (flickr.com)
Ukraine will complete repairs to the Druzhba oil pipeline this spring. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy promises to restore transit despite the risk of new Russian strikes, reports Ukrinform.
“If the question of European financing in exchange for the possibility of oil supplies remains on the table, we have said when we will repair the Druzhba pipeline. Responsibility for the supply will lie with the Europeans,” he said.
Ukraine will repair Druzhba as agreed.
“I told them we will finish this spring. A lot has already been done,” Zelenskyy added.
The president warned that destroyed reservoirs cannot be restored in a short time. It is only about restoring transit, with all the risks that will accompany this process.
Zelenskyy noted that he is uncertain whether Russia will refrain from new strikes on the pipeline.
“Moreover, we do not know whether the Russians will refrain from launching new strikes,” he said.
Druzhba pipeline
The repair of Druzhba has turned into a tool of pressure on Kyiv. Hungary blocked an EU loan of 90 billion euros and linked the unfreezing of this issue to the restoration of the pipeline.
Hungary’s Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó once again accused Kyiv of “violating sovereignty” — this time over an alleged attack on the TurkStream gas pipeline.
He also stated that Druzhba is technically operational, and its shutdown is supposedly a deliberate decision by the Ukrainian side.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, in response, announced the suspension of gas supplies to Ukraine — and directly linked this decision to the situation around the oil pipeline. The real reason for the shutdown of Druzhba, however, is Russian airstrikes on the pipeline infrastructure at the end of January 2026.
Naftogaz, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, held a closed briefing for diplomats from 31 countries. They were shown photos and videos from the site of the damage as evidence that the pipeline was destroyed by Russia.
Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico supported the Hungarian position and also threatened to block future loans to Ukraine, despite the fact that responsibility for the damage to Druzhba lies with the Russian side.
