Diplomats of the European Union (EU) are irritated by attempts by Hungary and Slovakia to use EU rules to maintain access to Russian oil, which other bloc countries have already refused.
Politico writes about this with reference to sources.
Budapest and Bratislava appealed to the European Commission for help after Ukrainian sanctions blocked the transit of pipeline oil from Russiaʼs private oil company Lukoil through Ukraine to Hungary and Slovakia. This could deprive the two countries of a third of their oil imports.
Both countries insisted that the Ukrainian sanctions violate a 2014 trade agreement between Kyiv and the EU. The request to the European Commission, as noted by Politicoʼs sources, put the EU at a standstill. Officials know that they have to act according to the rules, so they report on their work on it. However, behind the scenes and in discussions among diplomats, there is considerable disappointment that this issue is even on the agenda of Brussels.
Some diplomats resent the fact that all other EU members have found ways to refuse oil from the Russian Federation, while Hungary and Slovakia have become exempt from the sanctions and continued to pump it. Hungary even increased the import of Russian oil, which caused particular dissatisfaction in the EU.
"Many EU members took costly but necessary efforts to get rid from dependence on Russian gas and oil … mainly because it stinks of blood," said one EU diplomat on condition of anonymity.
And he added that Hungary has problems not only with a sense of smell, but also with a lack of determination to get rid of addiction.
As Politico writes, such comments from diplomats come against the background of growing EU hostility towards Budapest — countries are tired of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán because of his friendship with Russia and attempts to lift sanctions from the Russian Federation. A similar position is taken by his Slovak colleague Robert Fico, inclining Bratislava to a more pro-Russian position and suspending the financing of military aid to Ukraine.
EU sanctions and exceptions to them
Since 2022, the European Union has imposed an embargo on the import of Russian oil, which is one of the main sources of income for the Kremlinʼs war machine.
At the same time, exceptions were made to the sanctions — the EU allowed pipeline deliveries of oil, in particular, to Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic via the “Druzhba” pipeline, so that these countries would find alternative import options. However, there was a condition — we need to switch from Russian oil quickly.
Germany and Poland also imported from “Druzhba”, but they stopped buying Russian oil last year. The Czech Republic declared plans to end imports from Moscow by 2025. Slovakia has decided to upgrade its refinery to process more non-Russian crude oil.
Meanwhile, Hungary has halved its oil imports from Russia through the pipeline compared to 2021. In addition, Budapest concluded new agreements with Russiaʼs largest corporation “Gazprom”.
Threats from Hungary and Slovakia
Hungary and Slovakia sensed opposition from within the bloc, so they resorted to threats. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijártó said that his country will block EU military aid to Ukraine until the latter lifts sanctions against “Lukoil”.
Slovak President Peter Pellegrini said that Ukraine should "establish order as soon as possible" or Slovakia "will eventually have to take measures in response". Later, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico threatened to cut diesel exports to Ukraine if Kyiv continued to block the transit of Russian oil to the country. Slovakia provides 10% of all diesel fuel imports to Ukraine.
- Russiaʼs Lukoil has stopped supplying oil to Hungary and Slovakia due to Kyivʼs sanctions against the company, which effectively prohibit it from using the territory of Ukraine for transit. Although both countries are exempt from the application of EU sanctions on the transportation of oil from the Russian Federation, the new Ukrainian sanctions nullified their immunity from restrictions.
- Because of this, the countries even initiated the consultation procedure of the arbitration court with the European Commission. However, their attempt failed — the European Commission rejected the request to force Kyiv to allow the transit of oil from the Russian Federation.