Overview
- Hungary, which announced Wednesday it would progressively cut gas deliveries to Ukraine, is conditioning supplies on the restart of Russian oil flows through the Druzhba pipeline.
- Despite the threat, Hungary’s operator FGSZ and Ukraine’s grid company reported continued shipments the same day, with 8.3 million cubic meters scheduled.
- The European Commission sent experts to assess the damaged line last week and offered funding to fix the oil route that feeds Hungary and Slovakia, and Slovakia has moved toward an EU-backed repair plan.
- Budapest is also holding up a €90 billion EU loan for Kyiv and has joined objections to new Russia sanctions, using EU veto power to press its case.
- Ukraine relied on about 2.94 billion cubic meters of Hungarian gas in 2025, yet Kyiv says it can source replacement volumes if needed, a stance that could cushion households and industry if Hungarian flows fall.