Hungary's unrecognized Druzhba delegation arrives in Kyiv amid 'absurd' standoff
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A Hungarian expert team tasked with assessing the status of the Druzhba oil pipeline has already arrived in Kyiv, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced on March 12.
Budapest dispatched the delegation led by Gabor Czepek, the state secretary of Hungary's Energy Ministry, to verify the pipeline's operability, accusing Kyiv of misrepresenting its condition.
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said the visit had not been coordinated with Kyiv and that the Hungarian team has no official status or scheduled meetings with Ukrainian officials.
Speaking to Czepek in an online call, Orban instructed him to "try to get in touch with the government bodies responsible for energy."
"We must try politely to establish contact with (the Ukrainian side). If that doesn't work, we should request permission to go there ourselves and conduct an on-site inspection," the prime minister told the official.
The Kyiv Independent has reached out to Hungary's Foreign Ministry, Energy Ministry, and the Hungarian Embassy in Kyiv for comment.
The Ukrainian section of the Druzhba pipeline, which had been delivering Russian crude to Hungary and Slovakia, went offline in late January due to a Russian attack in western Ukraine, Kyiv said.
Bratislava and Budapest accused Ukraine of lies and blackmail, pledging to continue blocking the EU's 20th sanctions package against Russia and the 90-billion-euro ($107-billion) EU loan to Kyiv in retaliation.
According to Orban, the Hungarian side will contact EU diplomats and seek to exert diplomatic pressure on Ukraine to respond.
"It is an absurd situation that we are here like this."
The European Commission said it had proposed sending its own mission to inspect the pipeline, but has yet to receive a response from Ukraine. The Commission has no details about Hungary's delegation, spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said.
Orban also asked Czepek whether his team experienced "harassment" along the way. The ministry official responded that the team has safely arrived at the Hungarian embassy in Kyiv after a 14-hour trip.
Orban, widely seen as the most Kremlin-friendly leader in the EU, has repeatedly obstructed European assistance to Ukraine and sanctions against Russia.
The Hungarian strongman has further escalated his rhetoric toward Ukraine in recent weeks, accusing its leadership of threats and blackmail. Analysts have linked this development to the ongoing election campaign in Hungary, where Orban's Fidesz party trails behind the opposition Tisza Party in polls ahead of the April vote.
On March 11, Orban released a video that allegedly showed him talking to his daughter after "the Ukrainians have threatened" him and his family.
