In a post on his social media accounts, Szijjártó mentioned that the ‘Druzhba’ oil pipeline plays a crucial role in securing energy for Hungary. He emphasized that ‘a halt in supplies makes the arrival of oil to the country impossible, and any threat to energy supplies and the resulting damages are unacceptable.’ Szijjártó noted that, in cooperation with his Slovak counterpart Juraj Blanar, he sent a message to the EU Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas and the European Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen, urging them to ‘take promised actions to prevent Ukraine from attacking the oil pipeline leading to Hungary and Slovakia.’ Earlier, Szijjártó announced the stoppage of oil supplies through the ‘Druzhba’ pipeline to his country for the third time due to a new Ukrainian targeting. The Slovak Minister of Economy, Denisa Saková, had earlier reported a new targeting of the ‘Druzhba’ pipeline and that oil pumping could soon stop. It is noted that the ‘Druzhba’ oil pipeline starts from the city of Almetyevsk in the Russian Federation, passes through Bryansk city, and then branches into two sections: the northern (through Belarus towards Poland and Germany) and the southern (through Ukraine towards Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic). The transport of Russian oil to Poland through the ‘Druzhba’ pipeline was stopped at the end of February 2023, and to Germany since the beginning of 2023, while other countries continue to receive oil via the southern branch of the pipeline.
