Hungary blocks EU's 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine, demanding Russian oil ahead of war anniversary
Hungary announced on Feb. 20 that it will block the European Union's 90-billion-euro ($107 million) loan to Ukraine until Russian oil flows via the damaged Druzhba pipeline resume.
The move comes amid rising tensions between Ukraine and Hungary, one of the EU's most Kremlin-friendly states, and comes only days before the four-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.
"We are blocking the €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine until oil transit to Hungary via the Druzhba pipeline resumes," Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on X.
The so-called Ukraine Support Loan, preliminarily approved in December 2025, covers two-thirds of Ukraine's needs for 2026–2027, and earmarks 30 billion euros ($36 billion) for budget support and 60 billion euros ($71 billion) for military needs.
Without these funds, Ukraine risks running out of cash by mid-2026.
Szijjarto justified Budapest's decision to block the loan by accusing Kyiv of "blackmailing" Budapest and collaborating with the EU and Hungarian opposition parties to sow disruption in Hungary ahead of the country's parliamentary elections in April.
Current polling shows Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his ruling Fidesz party trailing opposition leader Peter Magyar by about 10 points. As the vote nears, Budapest has escalated anti-Kyiv rhetoric, with Orban declaring Ukraine an "enemy" earlier in February.
The promise to block Ukraine's EU loan also comes a day after Hungary and Slovakia announced plans to halt diesel exports to Ukraine in retaliation for suspended Russian oil transit via the Druzhba pipeline.
The Druzhba pipeline, one of the world's largest oil networks with a capacity of about two million barrels per day, remains a critical supply route for Hungary and Slovakia — the only EU countries still importing Russian crude through the system.
Transit through the Druzhba pipeline has been halted since late January following Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, according to Ukrainian officials.
