Druzhba pipeline repaired, clearing €90B Ukraine loan
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- Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on X that the Druzhba pipeline 'can resume operation' after repairs to a section damaged by a Russian drone strike in late January, ending a months-long standoff with Budapest.
- Viktor Orbán blocked the €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine in February in retaliation for the oil flow interruption; he said on Sunday he would drop his veto as soon as transit resumes, and EU ambassadors could approve the package as early as Wednesday.
- The 2026 allocation includes €16.7 billion in financial support and €28.3 billion in military support for Ukraine, with Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic securing an opt-out from the borrowing.
- European Council President António Costa thanked Zelenskyy for delivering on the repair, while High Representative Kaja Kallas said she expects the Hungarian veto to be lifted 'in 24 hours', though she added 'I don't want to jinx it'.
- Brussels had offered to fund the repairs with EU money and send experts to inspect the site — a key Orbán demand — but the inspection never took place before Ukraine completed the work itself.
- Orbán's 16-year tenure is ending after a bruising electoral defeat, weakening the leader who had repeatedly framed himself as the EU's most vocal opponent of Ukraine aid.
Why it matters: Ukraine stands to receive €45 billion in 2026 alone once Hungary lifts its veto, after Orbán's leverage — holding the EU's Ukraine funding hostage over Druzhba oil flows — evaporated the moment Zelenskyy announced repairs. A weakened outgoing Orbán is about to deliver the last major piece of EU Ukraine financing he spent months trying to block, while Brussels gets its most contentious Ukraine file closed before further friction.
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