President Zelenskyy demands recognition of Ukrainian wartime sacrifices following Druzhba oil pipeline repairs and diplomatic tension with regional neighbors

President Zelenskyy reproaches Hungary and Slovakia for ignoring the human cost of Druzhba pipeline repairs while blocking EU aid and sanctions packages.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 4, 2026, 5:35 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from UATV English

Criticism of pragmatic diplomacy

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has issued a sharp rebuke to the leadership of Hungary and Slovakia regarding their demands for the restoration of the Druzhba oil pipeline. Speaking to the media on March 2, Zelenskyy argued that Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Prime Minister Robert Fico have approached the issue through a lens of narrow energy pragmatism while failing to acknowledge the "wartime costs" borne by Ukraine. The President stressed that while European leaders emphasize their own energy security, there is a marked absence of public recognition for the Ukrainian workers who risk their lives to maintain infrastructure under fire.

Human cost of infrastructure repairs

The President revealed that recent efforts to repair the pipeline following Russian strikes resulted in a "combat situation" where Ukrainian workers sustained injuries. Zelenskyy highlighted the emotional and moral gap in the diplomatic discourse, noting that neither Budapest nor Bratislava has expressed gratitude or offered condolences to the families of those wounded while securing the energy flow for Central Europe. He questioned the ethical price of demanding that Ukrainians die or sustain injuries to ensure the transit of a commodity that directly finances the Russian military campaign.

Financing the Russian war machine

During a conversation with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, Zelenskyy underscored the strategic contradiction of the current transit arrangements. He explained that every barrel of Russian oil passing through the Druzhba pipeline generates revenue that the Kremlin uses to continue financing the invasion of Ukraine. Consequently, Zelenskyy asserted that Ukraine cannot be expected to show enthusiasm for restoring a transit system that essentially sustains its aggressor. This moral argument forms the core of Ukraine's resistance to treating the pipeline as a standard commercial asset during active hostilities.