Finance
Hungary and Slovakia want team to inspect Druzhba pipeline damage in Ukraine
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 27, 2026
4 min readLast updated: February 27, 2026
Quick Summary
Hungary and Slovakia are pushing for on-the-ground access in Ukraine to inspect damage that halted Druzhba crude flows on Jan. 27, escalating a political standoff with Kyiv over Russian oil transit. The outage forces both countries—temporarily exempt from the EU’s Russian oil ban—to rely on alternat
Hungary and Slovakia seek access to inspect Druzhba pipeline damage
By Anita Komuves and Jason Hovet
Druzhba pipeline outage: Hungary and Slovakia demand access and restart of oil flows
BUDAPEST, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Hungary and Slovakia agreed on Friday to set up a joint committee to investigate damage to the Druzhba pipeline in Ukraine, calling on Kyiv to grant it access and restart Russian oil flows.
Supplies via Druzhba to Hungary and Slovakia - the only European Union countries still importing Russian oil - were halted on January 27, forcing both to seek alternative sources and draw on state reserves.
Ukraine, which wants Europe to stop buying Russian fuel, says the pipeline was damaged by a Russian drone strike and it is making repairs as fast as it can.
Dispute between neighbours over responsibility and access
But Hungary and Slovakia blame Kyiv and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for the prolonged outage, in one of the biggest disputes between the neighbours since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago.
Zelenskiy spoke to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico by phone on Friday and invited him to Ukraine to discuss "all existing issues". Fico did not immediately comment on their talks.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban earlier said on Facebook that Kyiv had stopped oil flows for political reasons, adding he and Fico had agreed to create an investigative committee.
Orban called on Zelenskiy to grant access to the committee. Ukraine's foreign ministry did not immediately comment.
EVENTUAL END TO RUSSIAN ENERGY IMPORTS
EU energy policy tensions and continued reliance on Russian oil
Hungary and Slovakia have long clashed with Kyiv over Russian energy supplies transiting Ukrainian territory.
The Hungarian and Slovak governments maintain ties with Moscow despite criticism from some EU partners, oppose military aid for Ukraine, and are challenging EU efforts to end energy imports from Russia by the end of 2027 - a plan they say raises costs for their economies.
Fico told a news conference before his call with Zelenskiy that he feared the EU was prioritising Ukraine's interests over theirs. "We have a right to this oil," he said.
The pipeline outage has not threatened the domestic fuel supply, officials have said.
Alternative supply measures and strategic reserves
Hungary and Slovakia have released crude from strategic reserves for their refineries to fill the gap until alternative sources come, while Hungarian oil company MOL, which also operates Slovakia's Slovnaft refinery, has ordered tankers carrying Saudi, Norwegian, Kazakh, Libyan and Russian oil.
Longer-term, Hungary is buying Serbian energy assets and building pipelines there.
Serbia projects and efforts to reduce vulnerability
"We gain protection for ourselves for the coming years against Ukrainian-style blackmail," Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Friday while in Belgrade to announce a new pipeline to transport semi-finished oil products - separate from a crude pipeline already in the works.
MISSION A WELCOME STEP, EU SPOKESPERSON SAID
European Commission response and ongoing diplomatic pressure
The Commission said earlier this week that Ukraine was ready to accelerate repairs to Druzhba. A European Commission spokesperson said on Friday that Hungary's support for a mission to assess the pipeline was a "welcome step".
"We are now in contact with the Ukrainian authorities on this matter and continue to work with our member states to ensure security of supply," the spokesperson said.
Zelenskiy has said repairs cannot be completed quickly but is facing more pressure.
Fico has warned of further counter-measures after Slovakia stopped emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine.
Orban, meanwhile, is maintaining a veto on new EU sanctions on Russia and a huge loan for Ukraine.
Scepticism of support for Kyiv has become a theme of Orban's campaign ahead of an April 12 election in which he trails in the polls and is casting it as a choice between "war or peace".
Reuters reported on Tuesday that the EU Commission would submit a legal proposal for the permanent ban on Russian oil imports on April 15, right after the vote.
(Reporting by Anita Komuves in Budapest, Jason Hovet in Prague, Max Hunder in Kyiv and Kate Abnett in Brussels; Editing by Mark Potter and Alison Williams)
Key Takeaways
- •Supply shock, limited EU exposure: Druzhba’s disruption since Jan. 27 has outsized impact because Hungary and Slovakia are among the last EU states still importing Russian crude under exemptions, making the outage politically and operationally acute even if local fuel markets remain managed via reserves and alternative sourcing. (apnews.com)
- •EU policy backdrop tightens leverage: The Commission’s REPowerEU track targets ending remaining Russian oil imports by end-2027 and has moved from roadmap to legal/implementation steps on Russian fossil-fuel dependence, raising the stakes of any transit disputes and sharpening Budapest/Bratislava’s resistance to faster cutoffs. (commission.europa.eu)
- •Diplomacy meets conditionality: Hungary has explicitly linked cooperation on EU-level Ukraine financing to restoring Druzhba flows, signaling that pipeline repairs and verification access could become bargaining chips in wider EU-Ukraine negotiations. (apnews.com)
References
Frequently Asked Questions about Hungary and Slovakia want team to inspect Druzhba pipeline damage in Ukraine
1Why did oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia stop?
Flows were halted on January 27 after the pipeline in Ukraine was damaged, with Ukraine saying it was hit by a Russian drone strike.
2What did Hungary and Slovakia agree to do about the Druzhba pipeline outage?
They agreed to set up a joint committee to investigate the damage and called on Kyiv to grant access and restart Russian oil flows.
3How have Hungary and Slovakia managed supplies during the outage?
They sought alternative sources and drew on state reserves, while MOL ordered tankers carrying Saudi, Norwegian, Kazakh, Libyan and Russian oil.
4What is the European Commission’s position on the inspection mission and repairs?
An EU spokesperson said Hungary’s support for a mission to assess the pipeline was a welcome step and that the Commission is in contact with Ukraine to ensure security of supply.
5What broader EU policy dispute is connected to this outage?
Hungary and Slovakia are challenging EU efforts to end energy imports from Russia by the end of 2027, while the Commission is expected to submit a legal proposal for a permanent ban on Russian oil imports on April 15.
