By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Croatia is assessing whether it can lawfully import seaborne Russian crude oil to supply to Hungary and Slovakia after the Druzhba pipeline supplying them
Croatia weighs legality of Russian oil imports for Hungary, Slovakia
By Kate Abnett
EU Sanctions, Supply Routes and Regional Dispute
BRUSSELS, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Croatia is assessing whether it can lawfully import seaborne Russian crude oil to supply to Hungary and Slovakia after the Druzhba pipeline supplying them via Ukraine was damaged, the European Commission said on Wednesday.
Supply via Druzhba, which the two countries have relied on since the 1960s, was halted on January 27 due to damage which Kyiv blamed on a Russian drone strike.
Croatia’s Legal Review of Russian Crude
"Croatia has communicated that it is assessing the situation, whether it can lawfully accept Russian crude at its port, both under the EU and U.S. sanctions," a European Commission spokesperson said.
The Croatian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Croatia has so far said Adria can import more oil, but suggested there is no need for this supply to be Russian.
Adria Pipeline and MOL’s Non-Russian Flows
The Adria pipeline serves as an alternative route to supply Hungary and Slovakia. In response to the outage via Ukraine, Hungary’s MOL Group has ordered extra cargoes of non-Russian crude to be piped via Adria.
"Non-Russian oil is currently flowing normally through our system toward Hungary and Slovakia. It’s not a supplementary option; it’s an operational reality, and it means that our friends and allies in Hungary and Slovakia have a secure and reliable route of supply," Croatian Economy Minister Ante Susnjar said in a post on X on Tuesday.
POLITICAL DISPUTE
Hungary and Slovakia’s Repair Accusations
Slovakia and Hungary have accused Ukraine of stalling repairs to the Druzhba pipeline for political reasons.
Hungary vetoed new EU sanctions on Russia this week in retaliation, and blocked a new EU loan for Kyiv, straining Europe's pro-Ukrainian consensus on the eve of the Ukraine war's fourth anniversary.
Odesa-Brody Alternative Under EU Assessment
Ukraine says it is trying to repair the pipeline and offered to arrange alternative routes to transport oil to EU countries via its Odesa-Brody pipeline, in a letter Ukraine's mission to the EU sent to the European Commission, dated February 20 and seen by Reuters.
Commission Expects Accelerated Druzhba Repairs
The spokesperson also said that the European Commission understands Ukraine is ready to accelerate repairs to Druzhba and that the EU is assessing the Odesa-Brody option.
Midterm, Not Immediate, Solution
"It might be, therefore, be a bit more of a midterm solution, rather than something that would immediately be a solution," the spokesperson said.
(Reporting by Kate Abnett, Benoit Van Overstraeten; additional reporting by Ivana Sekularac, Jason Hovet; writing by Charlotte Van Campenhout; editing by Jason Neely)
