Adviser to the Ukrainian Minister of Energy Lana Zerkal warned on Thursday that Kiev might decide to do something about the Hungarian Druzhba oil pipeline that runs through the Ukrainian territory, due to Budapest's unwillingness to abandon Russian oil
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th May, 2022) Adviser to the Ukrainian Minister of Energy Lana Zerkal warned on Thursday that Kiev might decide to do something about the Hungarian Druzhba oil pipeline that runs through the Ukrainian territory, due to Budapest's unwillingness to abandon Russian oil.
"There is a wonderful lever in the hands of Ukraine, which is the Druzhba oil pipeline," the adviser said at the Kiev Security Forum, adding that Hungary is "taking advantage" of the situation in Ukraine by bargaining with the European Union.
It would be "appropriate if something happened" to the oil pipeline, but the final say will be on the side of the Ukrainian government, which should decide whether it wants to speak with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in "the language that he understands and which he imposes on the EU," Zerkal added.
On May 16, Hungarian Foreign and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto said that Budapest expected a 18 billion euro ($18.8 billion) investment plan from the European Commission that would help mitigate the consequences of the possible embargo on Russian pipeline oil, since the energy restrictions are expected to cause more than double increase in energy prices in the country.
The Druzhba oil pipeline runs through Russia's Samara region, passes through Bryansk and then branches into the northern and southern sections, passing through the territory of Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia and Lithuania. The pipeline carries oil exports from Russia to Europe. The Ukrainian section of the pipeline is owned by Ukrtransnafta and Russia pays for the transit of its oil through its neighbor's territory.
