Oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline to Slovakia are expected to resume Wednesday, following a disruption that prompted Bratislava to halt aid to Ukraine’s power grid.
The halt in Russian oil shipments through the pipeline, which began at the end of January, was attributed by Kyiv to damage caused by Russian attacks. However, Hungary and Slovakia have accused the Ukrainian government of intentionally blocking the resumption of supplies.
Meanwhile, escalating violence in southern Ukraine has left seven police officers injured in an explosion, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Two of the officers sustained serious injuries.
The explosion occurred at a decommissioned gas station in the city of Mykolaiv while a shift change was underway, resulting in several police vehicles being present at the location. This incident follows a separate attack in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv over the weekend, where a police officer was killed and nearly two dozen people were wounded.
Authorities are investigating whether the Mykolaiv explosion was a terrorist act. Police Chief Ivan Vyhivskyi suggested a connection between the two attacks, noting the arrest of a 33-year-old woman in the Lviv bombing who is suspected of being recruited by Russian intelligence.
The developments come as concerns grow over European reliance on Russian energy and the ongoing security of Ukraine. European Parliament member and Hungary expert Daniel Freund criticized Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, stating, “Viktor Orbán is once again jeopardizing the security of Ukraine and Europe with his veto – and is thus playing into Putin’s hands. We can no longer afford this,” according to a report in Der Spiegel. Freund called for Hungary to have its voting rights within the European Council suspended, asserting that Europe has been blackmailed by Orbán for too long.
Slovakia and Hungary are the only EU member states that continue to significantly rely on Russian pipeline oil. The disruption in oil supplies underscores the vulnerabilities within the European energy market and the geopolitical tensions surrounding the conflict in Ukraine.
