Viktor Orbán demands Ukraine reopen Druzhba pipeline for Russian deliveries; Zelenskyy says Ukraine is not losing the war. What we know on day 1,459
The Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, has threatened to veto the EU’s €90bn ($106bn) loan to Ukraine unless Kyiv restores Russian oil deliveries through a pipeline on its territory. Ukrainian authorities say the Druzhba pipeline was shut down after being damaged during a Russian attack in January, angering Kremlin allies Orbán and the Slovakian prime minister, Robert Fico. “As long as Ukraine blocks the Druzhba pipeline, Hungary will block the €90 billion Ukrainian war loan,” Orbán said on Facebook on Friday. “We will not be pushed around!” Slovakian economy minister Denisa Sakova said Ukraine had postponed the resumption of oil deliveries until 24 February. On Wednesday, Fico declared a state of emergency over supplies and threatened retaliatory measures against Ukraine if the pipeline – which runs from Russia through its territory to Slovakia and Hungary – was not reopened.
Hungary’s foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto, confirmed it was opposing the EU loan, saying on X on Friday: “By blocking oil transit to Hungary through the Druzhba pipeline, Ukraine violates the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, breaching its commitments to the European Union. We will not give in to this blackmail.”
