Szijjártó claimed that Kyiv’s move “clearly violates” the EU’s 2014 association agreement with Ukraine. Hungary and Slovakia — also affected by the ban — have now begun talks with the European Commission, he added, a precursor to legal action.
Ukraine argues it is simply trying to throttle a key source of revenue for Russia’s war chest more than two years after its invasion, with estimates showing Moscow made $180 billion from its oil exports last year. The country’s energy ministry declined to comment.
The escalating diplomatic spat comes as ties between Ukraine and Hungary hit rock-bottom, with Kyiv last week lashing out at Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán for meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin within a self-styled “peace mission.”
Ukraine’s move has also prompted a backlash in Slovakia, which relies heavily on Moscow for oil as well. Although Budapest’s top refiner has already sourced alternative supplies, the sanctions drew a fierce reaction from Slovak PM Robert Fico.
“Slovakia doesn’t intend to be a hostage to Ukrainian-Russian relations,” he said on Saturday, following a call with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. The ban means the country’s central Slovnaft refinery would “receive 40 percent less oil than it needs,” Fico said, arguing it would also reduce Slovak fuel exports to Ukraine that make up a 10th of Kyiv’s consumption.
Following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU banned imports of Russian oil arriving at the bloc by sea, but allowed landlocked countries like Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic to continue buying supplies via the Russia-to-Europe Druzhba pipeline until they could find an alternative solution.
