Ukraine, Hungary spat highlights tensions over pipeline attack

Kyiv and Budapest exchanged sharp rhetoric after tensions escalated following a Ukrainian strike on Russian oil infrastructure, which disrupted flows through a critical pipeline supplying Hungary.

During a press conference on Aug. 24, President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested that the future of the Druzhba oil pipeline—which delivers Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia—may hinge on Hungary’s position regarding Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.

“We have always supported friendship between Ukraine and Hungary,” Zelensky said. “The existence of ‘Druzhba’ depends on the position of Hungary.”

Zelensky’s remarks drew a sharp response from Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who accused Zelensky of threatening Hungary and its sovereignty.

“We urge Volodymyr Zelensky to stop threatening Hungary and to stop risking our energy security,” Szijjarto said in a statement on Facebook.

In turn, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha responded to Szijjarto’s comments, urging Hungary to reduce its dependence on Russian energy.

“You don’t need to tell the Ukrainian President what to do or say, and when. He is the President of Ukraine, not Hungary,” Sybiha wrote on X. “Hungary’s energy security is in your own hands,” he added. “Diversify and become independent from Russia, like the rest of Europe.”

The diplomatic tensions came days after Ukrainian drone strikes targeted the Nikolskoye pumping station in Russia’s Tambov Oblast on Aug. 18. The attack temporarily disrupted operations on the Druzhba pipeline, halting crude oil deliveries to Hungary and Slovakia.

The Druzhba pipeline, one of the world’s largest, carries Russian oil directly to Hungary and Slovakia—the only EU countries still buying Russian crude through the system. In July, they imported $232 million and $196 million worth of oil, respectively.

Hungary has repeatedly opposed EU attempts to fully halt Russian energy imports and has threatened to block Ukraine’s path to EU membership.

Meanwhile, Kyiv regularly carries out attacks on military and industrial facilities in Russia, targeting Russian oil infrastructure to undermine Moscow’s revenue streams and weaken its ability to wage war in Ukraine.