Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has declared a total blockade against Ukraine, halting the transit of goods and fuel through Hungarian territory.
This move comes in retaliation for Kyiv’s ban on Russian oil and follows the arrest of several Ukrainian banking officials in Budapest.
“We will not yield to blackmail. We will not abandon free Russian energy, as this would destroy millions of Hungarian families. This is not our war. We will not give money to Ukrainians and will not allow their EU accession. We have stopped supplying gasoline and oil to Ukraine. Until Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline is restored, we will block any critical transit to Ukraine passing through Hungary,” Orban stated.
He used extremely strong language, openly challenging Ukraine’s financial resilience in wartime:
“Ukrainians will run out of money before we run out of oil. If they try to play games with Hungarians and pressure us, they cannot expect us to make financial decisions in Brussels supporting Ukraine—and we will not. Until order is restored, we will use every tool at our disposal,” Orban added.
The conflict escalated further as Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Budapest of detaining seven employees of Ukraine’s State Bank, whose whereabouts remain unknown.
According to Sybiha’s post on X, the officials were transporting approximately $40 million, €35 million, and 9 kilograms of gold from Austria to Ukraine when stopped in Hungary. GPS tracking indicated the vehicles were near a Hungarian security services building in Budapest. Kyiv has labeled this an “illegal action” and urged the European Union to intervene urgently.
