Hungary and Slovakia set up a joint team to investigate the Druzhba pipeline and demanded that Ukraine allow experts on-site. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accused Ukraine of lying and of “state terrorism” in a new attack.
Hungary and Slovakia agreed to set up a joint investigative committee for the damaged Druzhba pipeline and urged Kyiv to resume oil flows immediately as the spat intensifies.
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The move was announced by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after a phone call with Slovakia's Robert Fico on Friday. The Slovak leader is a close ally of Budapest.
The standoff escalated this week after Hungary blocked the EU's €90 billion financial package to Ukraine to the fury of member states supportive of Kyiv who see it as blackmail. Meanwhile, Brussels is looking for options to diffuse tensions.
Hungary and Slovakia are demanding an expert mission to assess the damage of the pipeline on the ground, which Kyiv says the Druzhba was damaged in a Russian drone hit.
The pipeline, which delivers cheaper Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia, has been offline for a month, impacting transit via Ukraine.
Hungary and Slovakia have accused Ukraine of "lying" about the impact of the attack, which they argue did not affect the core structure of the pipeline, for political reasons in order to force them out of Russian energy. Slovakia and Hungary are the only two countries that still import seaborn Russian crude, providing revenue to Russia.
“We expect the President of Ukraine to fulfil his obligations towards the European Union and its member states and to restart the Friendship oil pipeline,” Orbán said on Friday.
Orbán, once again, attacked the Ukrainian president, accusing him on conspiring against Hungary. The Hungarian leader is presenting the issue as a critical matter for national security in the midst of an aggressive election campaign due April 12.
He is trailing in polls faced with opposition from younger conservative Peter Magyar.
Orbán: Zelenskyy is dodging inspection on the ground
Speaking on Hungary’s national radio broadcaster on Friday, Orbán said Zelenskyy had not responded to his proposal to send international experts to assess the pipeline.
In a letter sent Thursday, Orbán told the President of the European Council that a "fact-facting mission" should be deployed on the ground to break the impasse.
“The Ukrainians are not willing to accept a verification, fact-finding mission" he said. "I think Western Europeans are starting to sober up, and more people are realizing that the Ukrainians are lying. President Zelenskyy is lying; he is not telling the truth."
Orbán also claimed Hungary was under attack and accused Kyiv of seeking to create economic instability ahead of Hungary’s parliamentary elections in April.
“Let’s not forget, the Ukrainians blew up Nord Stream. Ukraine is a country that is capable of blowing up the basic infrastructure of Germany’s energy supply and economic operations on the high seas. This is state terrorism,” Orbán said.
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline was sabotaged in 2022. In 2024, Germany issued arrest warrants for Ukrainian nationals in connection with the investigation.
Orbán considers turning to Croatia's Adria pipeline
In the same interview, Orbán urged Croatia to allow the transit of Russian oil through the Adria pipeline. The Croatian operator JANAF said deliveries of non-Russian oil are underway and suggested it has capacity to supply Hungary and Slovakia.
Still, deliveries so far have been limited to non-Russian oil. Croatia is analysing whether it can import Russian oil sanctioned by the US and the EU. Until now, it has refused to.
“This is not an opportunity for Croatia, but an obligation, and they cannot afford not to deliver this oil to Hungary,” Orbán said.
“The Croatians have a proposal to make this pipeline a main pipeline, which we are not opposed to. But this requires various developments and tests,” he added.
Orbán added that Russian crude is on average 13 to 20% cheaper than the alternatives for Hungary, and Budapest is not willing to pay above its standard rate.
Hungary's opposition leader warns for Orbán's fear-mongering
The leader of Hungary's opposition, Péter Magyar critized Viktor Orbán for misusing the issue of the Druzhba pipeline for fear-mongering and for creating panic.
On Wednesday, the Hungarian government ordered soldiers and police to guard critical energy infrastructure, and ordered a drone flight ban at the border region close to Ukraine.
"I call on Viktor Orbán, if he has any real, threatening information regarding Hungarian national security, not to post on Facebook and in propaganda, but to immediately contact NATO and request the application of Article 4 of the NATO Treaty," Péter Magyar said in a post on social media.
Magyar reminded that Poland called for NATO consultations in September 2025, when many drones violated its airspace, and added that if the threat is real, Orbán should invite him, as the leader of the largest opposition party, for consultation.