Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán ordered increased protection of critical energy infrastructure on Wednesday and accused neighboring Ukraine of attempting to disrupt Hungary’s energy system, intensifying a dispute over the shutdown of the Druzhba oil pipeline.
Hungary and Slovakia — both countries that have maintained energy ties with Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine — blame Kyiv for the outage on the pipeline that carries Russian crude across Ukraine to both states. Kyiv has not publicly replied to Orbán’s most recent accusation; it has previously said the Druzhba line was damaged by Russian drone strikes and that repairs are underway. The European Union has reassured Hungary and Slovakia they face no imminent oil shortage because alternative supplies are available.
Orbán, who has delayed a €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine and blocked a new round of sanctions on Russia until the pipeline is reopened, characterized the shutdown as “political, not technical, reasons.” In a Facebook video, he said he had received intelligence suggesting possible further disruption and announced the reinforcement of protections for energy infrastructure. His orders include deploying soldiers and equipment to repel attacks near key facilities and increasing police patrols around power plants, distribution stations and control centers. Orbán offered no public evidence to support his claim that Ukraine is behind the outage.
The prime minister has repeatedly accused Kyiv of trying to “blackmail” Hungary to secure his withdrawal of opposition to EU measures aiding Ukraine. He also alleged Ukraine wants to push up Hungarian energy prices ahead of Hungary’s April 12 election, framing the vote as a choice between “war or peace” and warning that his opponents would draw Hungary into the conflict. Independent polls generally show Orbán and his Fidesz party trailing; center-right challenger Péter Magyar is currently favored in many surveys.
At a meeting of experts, a European Commission spokesperson pointed to alternative routes, notably the Adria pipeline through Croatia, as sufficient to cover Hungary and Slovakia’s needs. Croatia confirmed that non-Russian crude is being shipped via Adria to both countries and said the pipeline has capacity to meet their requirements.
Hungary and Slovakia are among a small group of EU member states that have not cut or halted energy imports from Russia since the invasion; both have increased Russian oil and gas deliveries and have received temporary exemptions from EU rules banning Russian oil imports.
Brussels is seeking ways to move forward on the loan to Kyiv despite Budapest’s objections. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU would press the loan through “one way or the other.” Germany’s foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, said he was “appalled” by Hungary’s position, calling it a betrayal of the country’s own struggle for freedom, while Belgium’s foreign minister, Maxime Prévot, warned that patience in other capitals is running out.