The agreement between Ukraine and the EU on repairing the Druzhba oil pipeline to restore Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia was reached on March 17, 2 days before EU leaders met in Brussels.
“The EU has asked Ukraine for technical and financial support. The Ukrainian side has welcomed and accepted this request. European experts are ready immediately” - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Council President António Costa stated in a joint statement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also confirmed Kiev's support for the Druzhba oil pipeline repair plan.
In a letter to EU leaders, Mr. Zelensky expressed his "welcoming and accepting" of the EU's proposal for "necessary technical and financial support" to complete the repair and find longer-term solutions.
Ms. von der Leyen and Mr. Costa said that there were "tense discussions" with member states and Ukraine to "repair and restore oil flows".
Our priority is to ensure energy security for all European citizens," the two EU leaders said, adding that the European Commission is also studying "alternative pipelines for transporting non-Russian oil" to Central and Eastern Europe.
This is the first time Ukraine has allowed inspection of the Druzhba oil pipeline since the pipeline was damaged in a Russian attack in January this year. Hungary - a country dependent on this pipeline to receive Russian oil - has accused Ukraine of delaying repairs and has repeatedly called on the European Commission to send technicians to assess the extent of damage.
This issue escalated into a deeper diplomatic disagreement after Hungary and Slovakia threatened to block aid worth 90 billion euros to Ukraine if it did not repair the pipeline.
Ukraine affirmed that the repair of the Druzhba pipeline is underway and this location is still too dangerous to inspect. Kiev also prevented Budapest's previous efforts to survey the oil pipeline, calling the inspection team tourists. Mr. Zelensky also once admitted that he did not want to repair the Druzhba pipeline because doing so would facilitate Russia's oil exports.
Also related to Druzhba, Czech Deputy Prime Minister Karel Havlicek and Slovak Deputy Prime Minister Denisa Sakova will discuss opportunities for experts to inspect the Druzhba oil pipeline in Ukraine, CTK news agency reported on March 17.
The reverse oil supply from the Czech Republic to Slovakia and the establishment of an expert group to assess the extent of damage to the pipeline on Ukrainian territory will be carried out," Mr. Havlicek said. The talks are scheduled to take place in Prague on March 18.
On March 16, the Czech Republic proposed several options, in which Czech experts will lead a group of European experts to determine the actual status of the Druzhba oil pipeline on Ukrainian territory.
On the same day, March 17, Evropeiskaya Pravda news agency quoted sources in Brussels as saying that a group of EU experts will assess the situation of the Druzhba oil pipeline in Ukraine. The EU expert group is present in Kiev and the EU delegation in Ukraine is handling plans and logistics work. According to sources, there are no representatives from Hungary or Slovakia in this group.
