The Hungarian leader is escalating an energy dispute as he trails in the polls ahead of April elections.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Wednesday accused Ukraine of plotting to sabotage Hungary’s energy infrastructure and ordered troops to protect key sites.
“I have heard the briefings of the national security services and see that Ukraine is preparing further actions aimed at disrupting the operation of Hungary’s energy system,” Orbán said in a video posted on X.
The accusation adds fuel to a conflict Orbán has stoked with neighboring Ukraine as well as Brussels ahead of an April 12 parliamentary election in which he faces the prospect of defeat.
I’m surprised the Druzhba pipeline still occasionally functions, despite Russia fighting a war against Ukraine for what is now 4 years.
Orban should not expect Druzhba to keep functioning forever. It will not be blown up in Hungary. It will be blown up, repaired, blown up, repaired, and finally blown up and no longer repaired - in Russia and most likely, also in Ukraine. There are no guarantees for its survival. All the alarms have been ringing for 4 years. If Orban wants oil, he should buy it from elsewhere than Russia. He has been offered oil through Croatia, it’s just not Russian oil. He should accept the offer and forget about Druzhba.
As for Orban himself, if I was a Hungarian, I would get rid of him. He’s likely setting records of corruption and media manipulation right now, trying to manipulate his way to re-election for the umpteenth time.