European Council President António Costa stated at the summit that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's behavior was "unacceptable," while Hungary and Slovakia criticized the EU over delays concerning the "Druzhba" oil pipeline amid uncertainty about when an EU mission might arrive at the pipeline damage site, Politico reports, according to UNN.
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During discussions in the chamber, European Council President Costa called the behavior of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán "unacceptable" for blocking the approval of a 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine, a source familiar with the discussion stated.
Costa noted that no leader had ever crossed "this red line" before. He emphasized that, in Hungary's view, the situation had changed, but this was due to Russian attacks, and a leader's decision could not depend on the actions of a third country. Costa added that Budapest has access to alternative oil supply routes.
Orbán responded that Budapest has the right to block decisions.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico argued that Bratislava was paying the price for this situation and that Ukraine should allow their inspectors in, adding that Slovakia was joining Hungary in blocking the EU Council's decision on Ukraine.
20 leaders who spoke since then supported Costa, the official said.
At the same time, the publication writes that Hungary and Slovakia criticized the European Commission in a letter for slow efforts to repair the "Druzhba" oil pipeline, which is crucial for restoring the transit of Russian oil to the two countries.
"Their new intervention cooled the remaining hopes that the two countries would unblock the 90 billion euro EU loan to Ukraine during the leaders' meeting on Thursday," the publication writes.
"We expected a much more active and decisive approach," Hungarian and Slovak Foreign Ministers Péter Szijjártó and Juraj Blanár wrote in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday.
The two countries, which maintain friendly ties with the Kremlin, threatened to block the 90 billion euro loan until oil supplies are restored.
At the same time, as EU leaders prepare for tense negotiations with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán over the fate of the 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine, the publication notes, "a no less dramatic event is unfolding in parallel: a European Commission mission to assess the 'Druzhba' pipeline, a Soviet-era pipeline that is at the center of the dispute."
"The EU mission was announced with fanfare on Tuesday," the publication writes, "but it remains unclear when the delegation might arrive at the pipeline damage site." The publication indicates that "the mission arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday and is now awaiting a green light from Ukraine before heading to the 'epicenter' on 'Druzhba'." "A European Commission spokesperson did not answer questions about whether the EU mission had been granted access; and both Slovakia and Hungary have since criticized the mission as insufficient," the publication states.