PM Orban: Further Joint Steps With Slovakia May Follow Over Ukraine’s Halt of Oil Transit + Video

In order to restore oil deliveries through the Druzhba pipeline, additional joint measures may be initiated with Slovakia, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in an interview on Kossuth Radio. According to PM Orban’s assessment, Ukraine has attacked Hungary’s economy, warning that without Russian oil, gasoline prices could rise to around 1,000 forints per liter, triggering broader price increases. He stressed that the government remains committed to keeping Hungary out of the war.

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Communication Department/Akos Kaiser)

“As soon as this interview ends, I will immediately contact the Slovaks by phone to discuss what further joint steps we can take to ensure oil deliveries resume through the Druzhba pipeline,” PM Orban said Friday morning. He argued that Ukraine had targeted Hungary’s economy by halting oil transit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has yet to restart deliveries through the Druzhba pipeline. PM Orban noted that he sent an open letter to Zelensky yesterday but received no response, only that Hungary’s ambassador to Kyiv was summoned.

“Without Russian oil, gasoline prices would rise to around 1,000 forints per liter, which would trigger further price increases across the economy,” 

the prime minister said.

To prevent this, the government has taken defensive measures, first suspending diesel exports to Ukraine. PM Orban added that electricity exports could also be halted, but noted that ethnic Hungarians live across the border. Instead, Hungary has already blocked €90 billion in EU support for Ukraine, as well as the planned 20th sanctions package against Russia.

“Western Europeans do not know the Ukrainians and believe their claim that oil deliveries stopped for technical reasons. When Ukraine's leadership tells us something, we check it three times,” PM Orban said, adding that 

Hungary had requested its own experts examine the Druzhba pipeline.

“We know what the Ukrainians are capable of. It is no coincidence that soldiers and police had to be deployed to guard key infrastructure,” he added, noting that Ukraine was responsible for blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline.

The prime minister also suggested that opposition leader Peter Magyar and his allies should first examine the facts.

“The Ukrainians blew up Germany’s Nord Stream pipeline, infiltrated the Tisza Party, and a known spy organized Peter Magyar’s trips to Ukraine. They want a pro-Ukraine government that does not block their financing, abandons Russian gas, and supports the war. By contrast, 

we will not send soldiers, weapons, or allow ourselves to be drawn into the war,” 

Viktor Orban stated.

Addressing energy security, Orban said discussions are ongoing regarding oil deliveries through Croatia, but emphasized that Croatia remains a trusted partner.

“This has been the case for 800 years. It is a tremendous historical legacy that must be preserved. It is in both Hungary’s and Croatia’s interest to maintain friendship,” he said, adding that

Hungary expects Croatia to fulfill its contractual obligations and ensure oil deliveries.

He explained that Hungary currently relies on the Druzhba pipeline as its main supply route, supplemented by a secondary pipeline through Croatia. Hungary’s proposal is to upgrade the Croatian route into a primary supply line, but doing so requires further development and testing. In any case two pipelines are necessary to bridge the fallout if there is a problem with the other.

PM Orban also criticized Tisza's energy policy program announced by the former Shell executive as dangerous, arguing that to fully abandon Russian oil would reduce Hungary’s energy security rather than diversify it.

“If I cut off a functioning pipeline, I am not expanding my options but narrowing them. That is not diversification,”

the prime minister pointed out.

He noted that Russian oil is approximately $13 cheaper per barrel than Western oil, with a total difference of around $20 including transport costs. According to MOL data, losing Russian oil could lead to gasoline prices of 1,000 forints per liter and economic disruption. He also pointed out that refineries cannot process all oil types interchangeably.

PM Orban emphasized that Hungary has learned to live with the war over the past four years while remaining committed to staying out of it.

“We will continue to stay out of this war. A national-minded government means security, and that is worth remembering in the next election,” he said. He warned that Hungary is now closer to the conflict than before, arguing that the United States has withdrawn support for Ukraine and may soon step back diplomatically as well if no peace is reached, while the European Union continues to back the war effort, and wants to send a 'multinational security force'. "Their plan is to win on the battlefield rather than through peace. And Ukraine is bent on joining the Union." 

“In the next two to three years, we must prepare for the most dangerous scenario and focus on staying out,” 

PM Orban said, stressing that all Hungarians can decide whether they believe Peter Magyar's claims or not.

"The Tisza Party held a vote on whether to support Ukraine's EU membership. They supported it. So how can they say no? How can they say no when they are financing them and organizing their campaign? This is open collusion, the Ukrainians are openly talking about working to replace the Hungarian government," he pointed out, then emphasized: "The national petition had to be launched because only this government says that we do not support Ukraine's accession to the EU."

The petition launched by the government opposing will help demonstrate the will of the Hungarian people regarding Ukraine’s EU membership,

the PM stated.

Full employment and economic stability

Turning to the economy, PM Orban said Hungary has maintained full employment despite widespread layoffs across Europe.

"It is difficult to imagine mass unemployment here at home. In the past year, Poland lost 200,000 jobs, the Czech Republic 161,000, and Germany 129,000. Entire industries are collapsing in Europe because energy costs are four times higher than in the United States or China, due to the war,” he said. This means that everything, from aluminum and chemical products to motor vehicles manufactured in America and China, costs less and can be produced more cheaply, thereby squeezing out European products.

Óriási bravúr, hogy olyan megállapodásokat tudtunk kötni, amelyeknek köszönhetően továbbra is teljes foglalkoztatás van, nem mennek tönkre iparágak,

He described Hungary’s continued full employment as a major achievement, crediting strategic agreements and the transition to electric vehicle and battery production.

“At a time when layoffs are happening across Europe, Mercedes has hired its 5,000th worker in Hungary and is currently recruiting 3,000 more,” Orban said.

He warned Hungarians against taking for granted the worked based society that the government has built, adding that Hungary has introduced measures unprecedented in Europe, including an 11 percent minimum wage increase, doubling family tax benefits, introducing a 14th-month pension, tax exemptions for mothers, and fixed 3 percent housing loans.

Orban concluded by stressing that staying out of the war remains essential to preserving Hungary’s economic achievements. Another requirement is money. “Between 2010 and 2025, we redirected 15 trillion forints from the extra profits of multinational corporations to Hungarian families. This policy must continue. We must not allow multinational companies to enter government and take this money out of the country,” he said, explaining that only such amount should be allowed out as is deemed fair and necessary to secure further investments.

Cover photo: Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Photo: MTI/Prime Minister's Communication Department/Akos Kaiser)