Wedoany.com Report on Mar 18th, Hungary and Slovakia signed an agreement on the 16th to build a new oil pipeline for transporting gasoline and diesel between the two countries. Slovak Prime Minister Fico stated on the same day that Ukraine's decision to cut off Russian oil supply is "unilateral and harmful," and the Slovak government cannot accept it.
Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Economic Relations Szijjártó Péter released a video on the 16th after attending the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, the capital of Belgium. He said that earlier that day, he signed an agreement with Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Denisa Saková to build a new pipeline connecting the Slovak capital Bratislava and the Százhalombatta refinery in central Hungary.
According to reports, the new pipeline is 127 kilometers long, with an annual transportation capacity of up to 1.5 million tons. It can transport refined oil products such as diesel and gasoline and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2027.
According to the Slovak News Agency, Fico said during a phone call with European Council President Costa on the 16th that Slovakia cannot accept Ukraine's decision to stop transporting Russian oil via the "Friendship" pipeline and hopes the EU will pressure Ukraine to resume oil supply.
Fico also stated that the EU should not prioritize Ukraine's interests above those of EU member states such as Slovakia or Hungary.
The transportation of Russian oil to Europe via the Ukrainian section of the "Friendship" pipeline has been suspended since January 27. Hungary and Slovakia have expressed dissatisfaction and blamed the Ukrainian side for the situation.
The "Friendship" pipeline is a large pipeline network system for transporting Russian crude oil to Central and Eastern Europe. It starts in the Samara region of southwestern Russia, with the northern line passing through Belarus to Poland and Germany, and the southern line passing through Ukraine to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary.
