Ukraine’s stopping Russian crude oil transit shipments to Hungary has been an “incomprehensible and unacceptable” decision, the foreign minister said on Friday, but added that “supplies to Hungary have been stabilised by way of temporary solutions”.
Answering questions at a press conference, Péter Szijjártó, however, said that the facilities applied “will not work in the medium term”, adding that it was necessary to find a quick solution.
Szijjártó noted that Hungary and Slovakia had been exempted from a European Union sanction banning the use of the Druzhba pipeline which supplies oil from Russia to the region.
“So far … a correct energy cooperation has worked” between Hungary and Ukraine, Szijjártó said, adding that “Hungary has helped Ukraine many times and in many ways to ensure the security of their energy supplies.” “Reports about Ukraine’s changing their regulations under which shipments by Russia’s Lukoil cannot transit Ukraine to Hungary came out of the blue,” the foreign ministry quoted Szijjártó as saying in a statement.
Ukraine’s decision seriously impacts Hungarian and Slovakian oil security
Lukoil supplies one half of the oil imported from the east by pipeline, the statement said, adding that Hungary and Slovakia purchased an annual two million tonnes of crude oil from the Russian company.
“The Ukrainian decision will seriously impact the security of oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia in the long term,” Szijjártó said.
“We have told Ukraine’s authorities that it has been an incomprehensible, unacceptable and unfriendly decision … they showed some readiness to remedy the situation but those endeavours were somehow interrupted half way,” he said. The foreign minister added that the Hungarian government was in contact with its Slovak counterpart, and that the matter would be raised at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on Monday.
“It is strange that a country aspiring to be integrated with the EU is seriously jeopardising the energy supplies of two member states,” he said. “We are working to come up with a solution though we have not caused the problem; Ukraine should resolve it and I sincerely hope that they will soon do so,” Szijjártó said.
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Oh, well. Move on and get a grip.
Ukraine is losing, now Ukraine is grasping at straws. Hungary will never support a stupid war.
Now, Bulgaria is coming to the aid of Hungary. Hungary now has 2 choices, Bulgaria and Serbia via Turkey. Ukraine’s Zelensky has not made one good decision since his election.
Keep in mind, Hungary pays 1.5+ billion transport fee to Ukraine, supplies 42% of its electricity and 10% of its diesel. That of course has to stop. Why deal with a rouge nation that upset the balance of power for amusement’s sake.