SAEDNEWS: Ukraine’s attack on the Druzhba pipeline highlights that the Russia-Ukraine war now targets Europe’s energy infrastructure, halting Russian oil supplies to EU countries.
According to Saed News, quoting Russia Today, Ukraine’s action in attacking a transformer station connected to the Druzhba pipeline in Russia’s Bryansk region was not merely a military operation; it was also a clear political and economic message to Moscow and its allies in Europe. Druzhba, which means “Friendship” in Russian, has been a vital artery for transporting Soviet and later Russian oil to Eastern and Central Europe since the 1960s. Today, this pipeline represents the intersection of security, economic, and political interests.
Peter Szijjártó, Hungary’s foreign minister, described the recent attack as “unacceptable” and “a threat to national energy security.” From Budapest’s perspective, Ukraine targeted not only Russia but also an EU member state. Kyiv’s response, however, was different. Andriy Sybiha, Ukraine’s foreign minister, without confirming or denying responsibility for the attack, addressed Hungary saying: “Take your complaints to Moscow; Russia started this war and continues it.” This explicit response has escalated diplomatic tensions between the two countries to a new level.
After Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the European Union banned Russian crude oil imports via maritime routes. However, Hungary and Slovakia, due to their heavy reliance on cheap Russian oil, were exempted from these sanctions and continue to receive crude oil through Druzhba. This dependency has limited Budapest’s leverage over Moscow and led other European countries to criticize Hungary’s “energy dependence” approach. Ukraine’s recent attack has effectively exposed the vulnerability of this sanctions exemption.
This is not the first time Russian energy and oil infrastructure have been targeted. In recent months, several stations and pumping facilities linked to Druzhba have been targeted by Ukrainian drone and missile attacks. Although most of the damage was quickly repaired, the repeated attacks indicate that Ukraine intends to turn energy into a major front of the war—a front that can simultaneously pressure Russia’s economy and Europe’s political stability.
Hungary is one of the few European countries that sources more than 60% of its crude oil from Russia. A disruption of Druzhba’s oil flow could destabilize domestic refineries and raise fuel prices inside the country. Viktor Orbán’s government, long criticized by the EU for its close ties to the Kremlin, now faces a serious challenge: how to safeguard national energy security while avoiding further isolation within the European Union.
Ukraine’s attack should be analyzed within the broader context of the energy war. Russia has repeatedly used energy as a “weapon” since the start of the conflict; reducing or cutting gas flows to Europe was a prominent example of this policy. By attacking Druzhba, Ukraine is effectively using the same weapon against Moscow. This demonstrates that the war has entered a reciprocal phase in which energy infrastructure has become a primary battlefield.
The European Union is in a difficult position. On one hand, Ukraine is a partner and ally of the EU against Russia. On the other hand, Ukraine’s actions that threaten the energy security of member states could create divisions within the Union. Western European countries may defend this move, but Eastern and Central European countries, more dependent on Russian energy, will view it with concern.
For Russia, attacks on energy infrastructure mean not only financial losses but also signal vulnerability. The Kremlin has always sought to maintain oil and gas exports as a primary revenue source and a tool of political leverage. If Ukraine can continuously disrupt these routes, Russia will be forced to bear higher costs to protect its energy infrastructure.
This attack once again showed that Europe’s dependence on Russian energy, even after three years of war, remains one of the continent’s serious weaknesses. Although Europe has made progress in diversifying energy sources, countries dependent on Druzhba remain vulnerable. In the long term, such incidents could accelerate the transition to renewable energy and projects to connect new energy lines.
Ukraine’s attack on the Druzhba pipeline cannot be viewed merely as a military action. The attack carries multi-layered messages for Moscow, Budapest, and Brussels: for Moscow, it is a warning about energy exports; for Budapest, a reminder of the cost of dependence on Russian oil; and for the European Union, an alarm about the fragility of energy cohesion on the continent. The Ukraine war has now reached a stage where the boundary between the battlefield and Europe’s economic infrastructure has blurred. The future will depend more than ever on political and strategic decisions in Brussels, Budapest, and Kyiv.
