Hungary's Szijjártó: Druzhba oil flow to resume, "Ukraine will run out of money before we run out of oil"

Olha Kovalchuk, KATERYNA TYSHCHENKO - 21 March, 16:13

Péter Szijjártó. Photo: Facebook

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó has claimed that Ukraine will be forced to restore supplies of Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline in April because it is running short of money.

Source: Szijjártó at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Budapest, as reported by European Pravda with reference to Vadhajtások, a far-right Hungarian media outlet known for supporting the Orbán government

Details: Szijjártó believes Russian oil supplies to Hungary via the Druzhba pipeline will resume on 13 April, the day after the parliamentary election. He said he is confident that Viktor Orbán's ruling Fidesz party will win the vote and that Ukraine will then be forced to restart the oil flow through the pipeline.

Quote: "The Ukrainians will run out of money much sooner than we will run out of oil. So after our election victory, they will be forced to switch the Druzhba pipeline back on, and the supplies will resume on the evening of 13 April."

More details: With these remarks, Szijjártó suggested that Ukraine is running out of funding because Budapest is blocking a €90 billion EU loan. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán previously said he will not unblock any decision favourable to Ukraine until the Druzhba pipeline resumes transporting Russian oil.

During the conference, Szijjártó also said Ukraine's accession into the EU cannot be written into any peace agreement because that would mean "extending the war" to the whole European Union.

Quote: "What's more, the vast majority of European Union member states are also members of NATO, and if the EU accepted a country that is at war, that would mean NATO would also quickly enter into conflict with Russia, which would mean World War III."

Background:

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Orbán's continued blocking of the EU's €90 billion loan for Ukraine constitutes a serious breach of loyalty between EU states and will face repercussions.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said after the EU leaders' latest summit that the European Union will still provide Ukraine with a €90 billion loan package for 2026-28, despite opposition from Hungary.
The European Union welcomed Ukraine's commitment to repair the Druzhba pipeline, which was damaged by a Russian missile, within six weeks. This followed an EU proposal to mobilise financial resources and expert support to restore oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia.

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