Ukraine Has Two Goals in Attacking the Druzhba Oil Pipeline

The attack on the Druzhba oil pipeline carried a political message for Hungary, security policy expert Jozsef Horvath said. He also pointed out that the operation may have served multiple purposes at once.

A site along the Druzhba oil pipeline (Photo: AFP)

As the daily Magyar Nemzet highlighted in a previous article, Ukraine has once again targeted Hungarian energy security. Jozsef Horvath, a security policy expert, responded to our questions. The expert said that the attack on the Druzhba (Friendship) oil pipeline primarily aimed to compel Hungary to align with the European Union countries supporting the war and backing Ukraine.

 

Given the difficulties faced by the Ukrainian army on the front lines, I don’t think this would have been a priority target on its own. The Ukrainians carried out an operation with a sort of dual purpose,

– he said, explaining further that, on one hand, the Ukrainians may believe it benefits them to put the Hungarian government in a difficult position at the beginning of winter. On the other hand, he noted, Brussels might also see it as an opportunity to make Hungary’s oil supply more challenging, despite the fact that both the American and Russian presidents have assured the Hungarian government of their support in this regard.

Explosion at the Friendship Oil Pipeline, as Captured on Video

Cover photo: Could Brussels have seen an opportunity in the attack on the pipeline? (Photo: AFP)