Kallas expects Hungary to release funds to Ukraine “within 24 hours” after Druzhba pipeline repair

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy, Kaja Kallas, has shared her wish for Hungary to unblock its veto on the loan of 90 billion euros to Ukraine, after its president, Volodymir Zelensky, announced the repair of the Druzhba oil pipeline, which had not been operating for months due to a Russian attack.

At a press conference from Luxembourg following a meeting of EU foreign ministers, Kallas congratulated kyiv for fulfilling its promise to repair energy infrastructure, and noted the need for Budapest to lift its blockade now that “all obstacles have been removed.”

“We expect an agreement in 24 hours, so I don’t want to jinx it. I hope everything goes well because we have seen some twists in this file,” added Kallas, recalling that the loan to Ukraine was agreed at the European Council in December, with the favorable vote of the still Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán.

After saying that, despite the repair of the pipeline, Hungary should stop depending on the flow of Russian crude oil by the end of 2027, Kallas has also pointed out the need for the ‘momentum’ in Budapest after Orbán’s electoral defeat to also facilitate the approval of the twentieth package of sanctions against Russia – which is “long overdue” – and the start of negotiations for the twenty-first.

“We should also review long-blocked decisions, including the opening of Ukraine’s EU accession chapters, as well as the arms fund of the European Peace Support Fund. We should review sanctions that have been on the table and have not been agreed before,” he continued.

THE DRUZHBA OIL PIPELINE, REPAIRED

Kallas’ statements come after the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, confirmed the completion of repair works on the Druzhba pipeline, the most important artery for transporting Russian oil to central Europe and which has not been operating for months due to a Russian attack.

“As agreed with the European Union, Ukraine has completed repair works on the section of the Druzhba pipeline that was damaged by a Russian attack,” the Ukrainian leader said in a message on social media in which he offered an update on the country’s energy situation.

According to Zelensky, the pipeline “can now resume operation.” “Although currently no one can guarantee that Russia will not repeat attacks against the pipeline infrastructure, our specialists have ensured the basic conditions for restoring the functioning of the pipeline system and equipment,” he said.

The Druzhba pipeline has been the subject of criticism between Hungary and Ukraine for kyiv’s lack of will to proceed with its repair amid ongoing clashes with Viktor Orbán’s Executive, in turn the main obstacle to Ukraine’s rapprochement with the EU.

In this sense, the Ukrainian leader has stressed that kyiv is now waiting for “the unblocking of the European support package for Ukraine”, of 90 billion euros, which the EU already approved initially, but whose formal approval kept Hungary blocked in the middle of the scuffle with Orbán.

UKRAINE: “I HOPE MOSCOW HAS LOST ITS VIP INFORMATOR”

Thus, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andri Síbiha, who spoke by videoconference during the Foreign Affairs Council (CAE) held in Luxembourg, took advantage of the meeting to attack Hungary for the information indicating that Budapest would have shared with Russia the content of closed-door debates at meetings of the bloc’s ministers.

“I hope that Moscow has lost its VIP informant here once and for all,” Síbiha stated during her speech, as confirmed to Europa Press by European sources, in a comment that reflects kyiv’s distrust with the Government of Viktor Orbán, already on its way out after the electoral victory of the future Prime Minister of Hungary, Peter Magyar.

Several weeks ago, a consortium of investigative media – such as VSquare, ICJK and Delfi – published new information on the coordination between Budapest and Moscow to block internal decisions of the Union, including the audio of a conversation between the Hungarian Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjarto, with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, in which the former offers to send the latter documents discussed among the 27 on the possible accession of Ukraine to the bloc.

In the call between the two, Lavrov is heard inquiring about the conditions that the EU would set for Ukraine’s accession process and how the Hungarian minister offers to send him the documents through the Hungarian Embassy in Moscow, without specifying what papers are specifically involved.