Hungarian Minister Accuses EU of Orchestrating Halting Russian Oil Supplies Through Ukraine

On Tuesday, July 30, Hungary's Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó accused the European Union's executive commission of deliberately halting Russian oil supplies flowing into the bloc through Ukraine. He warned that this dispute could potentially trigger an energy crisis.

Ukraine intensified its sanctions against “Lukoil” in June 2024, leading to a ban on its oil transit through Ukraine to the EU. This decision caused serious concern in the Hungarian and Slovak governments, which consider themselves victims of these sanctions without having any influence over them.

Both Hungary and Slovakia issued ultimatums to Ukraine. The Hungarian Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, stated that Hungary will continue to block the military aid funding program for Ukraine under the European Peace Facility until Kyiv restores the supply of Russian oil. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has threatened that Slovnaft will cease supplying diesel fuel to Ukraine if the transit of Russian oil from Lukoil is not restored.

On Tuesday, Szijjártó criticized the EU’s executive commission in a Facebook post, alleging that it had "done nothing" since Hungary and Slovakia requested its intervention in the oil dispute.

“Despite the threat to the energy security of two EU Member States ... Brussels remains silent,” Szijjártó wrote, adding that either the commission is too “weak” to protect the interests of Slovakia and Hungary or “it was Brussels, not Kyiv, that invented the whole thing.”

“The European Commission, and President Ursula von der Leyen personally, must come clean immediately: did Brussels ask Kyiv to ban oil supplies?” Szijjártó wrote. “And if not, why has the European Commission taken no action in more than a week?”

Szijjártó reiterated Hungary's previous claims that the banning of Lukoil transfers across Ukraine amounted to “blackmail” in response to Hungary's call for an immediate cease-fire and peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.