European Union leaders have accused Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of disloyalty and blackmail after he blocked a €90bn (£77bn) loan for Ukraine. At a summit in Brussels, Orbán refused to lift his veto, citing a feud over a damaged pipeline that transports Russian oil to Hungary. He posted on X, "No oil = no money," a statement that underscores his hostile stance towards Ukraine amid the ongoing conflict.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Orbán's actions amounted to "a gross act of disloyalty," while European Council head António Costa described them as tantamount to "blackmail." Orbán, who has maintained close ties with Russia since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, has made hostility towards Ukraine a key issue ahead of elections on 12 April. Hungary depends on Russian energy, and Orbán has accused Ukraine of disrupting these supplies by failing to repair the Soviet-era Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia through Ukraine.
Kyiv claims the pipeline was damaged in January by Russian air strikes, that repairs will take weeks, and that restoring oil flow would be equivalent to lifting sanctions on Moscow. With the pipeline out of use, Orbán has blocked the release of EU funds to Ukraine, despite approving the decision at an earlier meeting. The EU leaders' gathering, which went late into the night, ended with many expressing thinly-veiled fury at Orbán's actions, highlighting deep divisions within the bloc over support for Ukraine.
Orbán remained resolute in his stance after the meeting, writing on X, "It was a tough debate, but we stood our ground. We have the right to say 'no' to the Ukrainian war loan. As long as @ZelenskyyUa does not lift the oil blockade, they will not receive any money from Brussels." The leaders' condemnation centers on Orbán's broken promise at a December summit to allow the loan to proceed. At that time, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic consented after being exempted from financial obligations, but Hungary is now blocking implementing legislation, further complicating EU unity.
In addition to Orbán, Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico, another ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, refused to endorse the summit's conclusions reaffirming the intent to release funds to Ukraine. The release requires unanimity, and the conclusions state it will be discussed at the next leaders' meeting. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen vowed the loan would be delivered "one way or the other," while French President Emmanuel Macron said there would be "no plan B" because "plan A must be implemented." Ahead of the meeting, Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded for the funds, calling them "a resource to protect lives," as Orbán's repeated stalling on EU aid and sanctions continues to pose challenges for Western support efforts.
Source: www.bbc.com