“I wouldn’t advise resorting to blackmail”: Magyar addressed Zelensky over the situation with the Druzhba pipeline

Hungary’s future prime minister, Péter Magyar, who has promised to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits Budapest, has called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky not to engage in “blackmail.”

The politician made the statement while speaking to the press.

Journalists asked Magyar to comment on information voiced by outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who said that Zelensky had expressed readiness to restart the Druzhba oil pipeline, but only after the European Union unblocks a €90 billion loan for Ukraine.

The leader of the election-winning Tisza party replied that he does not like such an approach and “would not advise engaging in blackmail” toward Hungary or the European Union as a whole.

“If the Druzhba pipeline is fit for transporting oil, then please open it, in accordance with the promise. We have information that this may happen in the coming days, as was announced, but we will not allow any blackmail,” the Tisza leader said.

As a reminder, Hungary has promised to lift its veto after the Druzhba pipeline is restarted.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported that Ukraine plans to carry out technical tests on the Druzhba pipeline as early as April 21. Whether Hungary will count technical testing of Druzhba as a resumption of operations remains unknown.