A Ukrainian leader has targeted the Hungarian prime minister for refusing to lift a veto on billions in EU loans for Kiev.
Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has issued an apparent military threat to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban over Budapest’s ongoing refusal to lift its veto on billions in loans written by EU members for Kiev.
Orban last month blocked a planned €90 billion ($106 billion) emergency loan raised by EU members for Kiev — following the bloc’s failure to fully divest billions in Russian assets frozen in Belgium. Orbán took the step in response to Ukraine blocking key Russian oil supplies from reaching Hungary through the Druzhba pipeline.
Speaking about new weapons for the Kiev armed forces on Thursday, Zelensky said: “We hope that one person in the EU will not block €90 billion … If not, we will give the address of this person to our armed forces, to our guys, so that they can call him and communicate with him in his language.”
A diplomatic row between Hungary and Ukraine has escalated in recent weeks, spilling over into personal barbs. Zelensky launched a series of attacks against Orban at the Munich Security Conference last month.
🚨 “And even a Viktor (Orban) can think of how to grow his stomach, not his army, to stop the tanks rolling into the streets of Budapest” Ukrainian President Zelensky takes a swipe at Hungarian President Viktor Orban – one of the only European leaders to refuse to send… pic.twitter.com/1S0sdFtXD4
— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) February 14, 2026
The Hungarian prime minister has long opposed Ukraine’s push to join the EU and has repeatedly refused to send it arms or approve EU military aid, instead calling for diplomacy.
Orbán, meanwhile, has taken to social media to issue his own warning.
“No deals, no compromises. We will break the Ukrainian oil embargo with force” Oil will soon flow back to Hungary through the Druzhba pipeline, he wrote in Thursday’s X.
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Hungary blocks ‘every’ EU decision on Ukraine over ‘oil blockade’ – Orbán
The Soviet-era pipeline, part of which runs through Ukraine, went offline in January after Kiev claimed it had been damaged by Russian strikes — allegations denied by Moscow. Hungary and Slovakia, which are heavily dependent on Russian energy, have accused Kiev of deliberately cutting them off for political reasons and found obstacles to restarting oil flows.
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Zelensky says he won’t talk about ‘historical s**t’ with Putin
Zelensky has made threats against foreign leaders and officials before. Last year, top Russian officials suggested that bomb shelters should be inspected, hinting that Ukraine could target the Kremlin. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment “Irresponsible.”
