Slovakia and Hungary halt diesel exports to Ukraine
18 February 19:30
Hungary and Slovakia have suspended diesel fuel exports to Ukraine until oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline are restored. This was reported by Index, according to Komersant.
During a report at a government meeting on the situation with oil supplies to Hungary, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that oil supplies had not yet been resumed, apparently due to a decision by Ukraine, and called it a “purely political decision.”
“We are stopping diesel fuel supplies to Ukraine, and they will not resume until oil starts flowing again through the Druzhba pipeline. We will stop there,” Szijjártó said.
According to the minister, the country currently has strategic oil reserves that will last for 96 days, so there is no cause for concern in the short term.
Hungarian government spokesman Zoltán Kovács also wrote on X about the suspension of diesel fuel supplies from Hungary to Ukraine.
“Diesel fuel exports from Hungary to Ukraine have stopped and will not resume until Ukraine resumes oil transit to Hungary,” Kovacs wrote.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico also said that the Slovak company Slovnaft is suspending diesel fuel exports to Ukraine and all other exports.
According to him, the government is taking this step in order to save oil reserves for domestic use.
“Slovnaft is stopping exports of diesel fuel to Ukraine and any other exports, and everything it now processes at home in Slovakia will be destined for the Slovak market,” the prime minister said.
According to Fico, the government decided to release 250,000 tons of oil reserves after supplies through Druzhba stopped due to Russian attacks.
He assured that there is no threat of a shortage of fuel or other petroleum products in Slovakia, and that the release of oil from the state reserve will help Slovnaft survive the period until oil arrives from Croatia.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry responded to the statements
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhyi said that Hungary had received information about the Russian shelling of the Druzhba oil pipeline on January 27, and that accusations against Ukraine of delaying supplies were illogical.
“Oil transit to Hungary has been stopped due to the shelling of infrastructure. On January 27, the Russians shelled the oil pipeline near Brody. It is impossible to pump oil there. The Hungarian side was informed on the same day. They knew about it. But for some reason, accusations are now being made against Ukraine. This is completely illogical behavior on the part of Hungary,” he said.
According to Tykhyi, Ukraine is in constant dialogue on this issue with both the European Commission and the relevant authorities in Hungary and Slovakia.
“The reason for the supply disruptions is Russian drone attacks on this infrastructure, and Ukraine remains a reliable transit country and strictly fulfills its obligations in accordance with existing agreements and the EU’s sanctions policy towards Russia,” Tykhyi said.
He also recalled that Hungary and Slovakia were granted exemptions from EU sanctions banning imports of Russian pipeline oil.
“But these exemptions are temporary. The temporary nature lies in the fact that they were given time to wean themselves off oil. We do not see any attempts to break free, but rather, contrary to EU policy, we see attempts to remain on it for as long as possible. They went to Croatia and asked to receive only Russian oil. It’s like drug addiction,” said the Foreign Ministry spokesman.
Earlier, on February 16, Hungary and Slovakia asked Croatia to allow the supply of Russian crude oil through the Adria pipeline, while the key route through Ukraine remains blocked.
Croatia has declared its readiness to ensure a stable supply of fuel to Central Europe, refuting accusations of “unreliability” and “speculation on the war.”
The day before, European Commission spokeswoman Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said during a briefing that the EU was negotiating with Ukraine on the timing of repairs to the oil pipeline and the speed of its launch. In addition, she said that neither Hungary nor Slovakia are in an energy crisis – their reserves will last for at least three months. At the same time, the Slovak government declared a state of emergency in the oil industry on Wednesday.
Slovakia imports about a third of its oil from non-Russian sources via the Adria pipeline, which runs through the Balkans and Hungary, and has signed a number of flexible contracts with Western gas suppliers.
