Hungary has thrown a wrench into the EU mechanism of support to Ukraine, by vetoing the release of the €90 billion package last week. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán used this extreme tool, allowed by EU Treaties but rarely used because of its political significance, as he realized that the EU is plotting to organize a defeat of Orbán in the upcoming national elections on April 12. The newest action in this regime change plot, which Orbán has exposed for months already, was Ukraine’s shutdown of the Druzhba pipeline which supplies Hungary with Russian oil, with the intention of aggravating the economic crisis, generating popular discontent, and defeating Orbán in the polls.
Apparently, the EU Commission did not expect that Orbán would dare to use his veto power, and tried, at least formally, to have Ukraine resume oil deliveries. Zelenskyy claimed that the pipeline has been damaged and that repairing it takes time. However, on March 3, Orbán sent a letter to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stating that “As confirmed by recently published satellite evidence, there is no technical or operational reason that would prevent the pipeline from reverting to normal operations immediately. The lack of willingness on the side of Ukraine to reopen the Druzhba pipeline is due to purely political reasons, with the intention to interfere in the ongoing Hungarian election campaign.”
Orbán reminded von der Leyen that last week, together with neighboring Slovakia, he proposed a fact-finding mission to Ukraine, which Zelenskyy has rejected, and called for measures other than “legal remedies under international and EU law.” He called on the EU Commission “to increase political pressure on Ukraine not to undermine the energy security of Hungary and Slovakia. I also expect the European Commission to enforce relevant provisions of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement.”
