In his letter, Orban claims that for the past four years, Zelensky has ignored the position of the Hungarian government and people regarding the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The Prime Minister points to the Ukrainian leader's attempts to involve Hungary in this conflict, adding that "you are working to drag Hungary into the war between you and Russia."
Orban also expresses dissatisfaction that Zelensky received support from Brussels and garnered the backing of the Hungarian opposition to create a pro-Ukrainian government in Hungary.
He emphasizes that recent actions by the Ukrainian side, particularly the closure of the Druzhba pipeline, threaten Hungary's energy security, which is unacceptable for the well-being of Hungarian families. "We do not want to participate in the conflict and do not wish to finance military actions," he adds, calling for a change in the anti-Hungarian policy.
Orban demands that Zelensky immediately open the pipeline and warns against further actions that could jeopardize the country's energy security.
The transit of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline was suspended on January 27. Ukrainian authorities link this to a drone strike on a pipeline facility in the Lviv region, which has provoked outrage from Hungary and Slovakia, who accused Ukraine of "hostile actions." Budapest also blocked a new EU sanctions package against Russia and a €90 billion loan to Kyiv that was planned for the fourth anniversary of the war. As a temporary alternative, Ukraine is proposing to use the Odessa-Brody pipeline.
Ursula von der Leyen, the head of the European Commission, condemned the attack on the pipeline and urged Ukraine to expedite its repair. The Slovak Ministry of Economy reported that Ukraine informed them about postponing the resumption of oil supplies through Druzhba to February 26, however, a source from "RBK-Ukraine" called this information unreliable.
