Hungary said a government “delegation” crossed into Ukraine on Wednesday in a bid to find out more about damage to a major pipeline that has knocked out its supplies of Russian oil — a mission Kyiv says has no official status.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry pushed back on the trip. Spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi said the Hungarian team had no official status and had entered the country “as tourists.” He added that it was “incorrect” to describe the group as a formal delegation.
Hungarian Energy State Secretary Gábor Czepek, who is leading the mission, announced the trip at the Záhony border crossing Wednesday morning.
“Hungary does not accept the shutdown of the Druzhba oil pipeline,” Czepek said, adding that the delegation’s job is to verify the pipeline’s condition and “create the conditions necessary for restarting it.” The pipeline delivers roughly 5 million metric tons of Russian crude to Hungary each year and is key to supplying the country’s Danube refinery, he said.
