Energy pressure builds inside Europe
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico delivered a blunt warning, saying Slovakia would halt emergency electricity exports to Ukraine unless Kyiv restored Russian oil transit through Ukrainian territory, setting a firm deadline of Feb. 23.
The dispute centers on the Druzhba pipeline, which still supplies Russian crude to parts of Central Europe.
Russian forces struck Ukrainian energy infrastructure in late January, an attack that damaged equipment tied to the Druzhba system in western Ukraine. The flow of oil to Slovakia and Hungary stopped that same day.
Ukrainian officials blamed Moscow and offered alternative routes, including the Odesa-Brody pipeline and maritime shipments.
Fico responded by declaring a state of emergency in Slovakia's oil sector, saying he would instruct SEPS, Slovakia's state grid operator, to suspend electricity deliveries to Ukraine if oil transit didn't resume. Slovakia supplied roughly 18% of Ukraine's record electricity imports in January, and doubled its support compared with the previous year.
Oil transit to Slovakia and Hungary has been disrupted since late January after a Russian strike hit the Druzhba pipeline, a key route carrying Russian crude to Central Europe. Ukraine’s pipeline operator said this week that the Jan. 27 attack damaged critical infrastructure and that repair works are ongoing.
In a letter to the European Commission, Ukraine’s embassy to the EU proposed using the Odesa–Brody pipeline or maritime routes as temporary alternatives to supply Hungary and Slovakia while repairs are completed.
Fico accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of treating Slovakia as a “hostile country,” saying Kyiv first halted gas flows, costing Slovakia €500 million annually, and has now stopped oil supplies, causing further losses. He also defended his decision to refuse Slovakia’s participation in the EU’s planned €90 billion military loan for Ukraine.
Hungary joins the resistance
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó escalated the pressure at the European level by blocking a major EU financial package for Ukraine that required unanimous approval. Budapest tied its position directly to the restoration of oil transit through Druzhba. It's through that route that most of Hungary's oil supply from Russia is delivered.
When the EU adopted its 2022 oil embargo against Russia, Hungary and Slovakia both secured exemptions. Since then, Orbán has delayed or opposed several sanction packages and has resisted long-term funding commitments, while Fico shifted Bratislava away from the prior government's strong military backing of Ukraine.
Disputes over gas transit agreements in late 2024 also strained relations. Kyiv ended certain transit agreements when contracts expired, increasing pressure on downstream countries that still rely on Russian supply routes.
Each confrontation reinforces the same pattern: energy needs still drive national policy, even during wartime.
Ukraine’s response and the broader stakes
Ukrainian officials labeled the moves as political blackmail, arguing that the infrastructure damage resulted from Russian attacks and that repairs and legal transit options were still under discussion. Officials in Kyiv also noted that only a handful of EU member states still import significant volumes of Russian oil.
The stakes involved extend beyond one pipeline; Ukraine's power grid has absorbed repeated missile and drone strikes since 2022, and emergency electricity imports from neighbors help stabilize hospitals, factories, and homes, especially during the winter. Losing the Slovak supply would tighten an already strained system.
There are domestic consequences if Slovakia's and Hungary's oil flow remains interrupted; refineries depend on steady crude deliveries. Governments must balance solidarity with Ukraine against rising costs and voter frustration at home, while leaders in Bratislava and Budapest argue that their economies can't function on words alone.
How often has anyone pushed back?
Since the war began, open resistance to Kyiv's policy demands inside the EU has surfaced several times, though rarely so directly. Hungary has delayed sanctions, questioned longterm military aid, and blocked joint funding measures on more than one occasion. Slovakia's stance shifted after Fico's election victory. Poland and other frontline states have also clashed with Kyiv over grain imports and transit rules.
Threats to cut electricity exports mark a much sharper escalation. Most European governments have chosen to absorb costs rather than risk public division. Fico and Orbán are not testing to see how far they can press their leverage without fracturing broader alliances.
There's no easy answer. Russian oil sales generate revenue for Moscow, yet landlocked Central European states have built infrastructure around pipelines that can't be replaced immediately. Ukraine needs power and financial support to continue its defense, while Slovakia and Hungary need fuel to keep their economies running.
Energy remains the quiet force shaping Europe's wartime politics. When pipelines falter, it strains unity, and the coming weeks will show whether Kyiv quickly restores transit, whether any alternatives hold, or whether Europe faces another round of internal confrontation.
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