WRAPUP 4-Hungary blocks Russia sanctions, EU cash for Kyiv on eve of Ukraine war anniversary

Hungary maintained its veto on Monday on ​new EU sanctions on Russia and a huge loan for Ukraine, while a Ukrainian strike ‌on a Russian ​pumping station serving the Druzhba oil pipeline threatened to further harm Kyiv's fraught ties with Budapest.

On the ground in Ukraine, which on Tuesday marks the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv claimed a rare frontline advance, though Moscow continued its campaign of targeting Ukrainian cities, killing two people in drone strikes in the south. The diplomatic spotlight was on Brussels, where European foreign ministers tried to persuade Hungary and Slovakia to ‌back off threats to punish Ukraine for delays restarting the flow of Russian oil via a Soviet-era pipeline.

However, an overnight drone strike claimed by Kyiv which caused a fire at the pumping station more than 1,200 km (750 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border threatened to inflame tensions further. Ukraine gave no details about the strike's broader impact on the pipeline. Kyiv says the Druzhba pipeline, which still carries Russian oil via Ukrainian territory to Europe, was damaged a month ago by a Russian drone strike, and it is fixing it as fast as it can. Slovakia and Hungary, which have the EU's only two refineries ‌that still rely on oil via Druzhba, blame Ukraine for the delay.

"It is up to Ukraine, whether it restarts shipments on the pipeline or not, it is increasingly clear that we are facing open political blackmail here," Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban told parliament in Budapest. "The Hungarian ‌government does not give in to any blackmail." Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said in a post on X that Hungary and Slovakia should not be allowed to "hold the entire EU hostage" and called on them to "engage in constructive cooperation and responsible behaviour".

Hungary and Slovakia both have leaders who have bucked the European consensus by maintaining close relations with Moscow, but have previously stopped short of blocking EU sanctions on Russia or loans to Ukraine. In a letter seen by Reuters, Orban told European Council chief Antonio Costa the pipeline outage was an "unprovoked act of hostility that undermines the energy security of Hungary" and vowed to block a 90-billion-euro ($106 billion) loan until it was solved. Hungary has also blocked the latest sanctions package on ⁠Russia.

Hungary and Slovakia ​also threatened to stop emergency electricity exports to Ukraine unless oil shipments resume. Slovakia ⁠had set a Monday deadline, though exports were continuing, according to data from transmission system operator SEPS. UKRAINE CLAIMS FRONTLINE GAIN

Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to send his forces into Ukraine on February 24, 2022, triggered Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two. Russian forces have killed tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and destroyed Ukrainian cities. Hundreds of thousands of ⁠soldiers on both sides have died or been wounded. In the war's first year, Ukraine forced back the Russian offensive at the gates of Kyiv and reclaimed swathes of occupied land. But a Ukrainian counteroffensive failed the following year, and since then Moscow has made slow but relentless gains in costly battles along a 1,200-km (750-mile) front.

In ​a rare announcement of a Ukrainian advance, the commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said on Monday his forces had "restored control" over 400 square km of territory along a stretch of the southern frontline. Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the claim, ⁠and there was no immediate response from Moscow. If true, it would be the first big Ukrainian gain since December and one of the biggest in many months.

The U.S. has been trying to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, but progress has proved elusive. Their most recent talks, in Geneva on February 17 and 18, did not produce a breakthrough. Another round ⁠of ​talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine could be held at the end of this week, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's chief of staff told Ukrainian media on Monday.

As President Donald Trump has steered the United States away from providing military and financial support for Ukraine, European countries have increasingly stepped in. But the threats from Slovakia and Hungary put that consensus in jeopardy. Four diplomats in Brussels told Reuters that Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto drew sharp criticism from EU colleagues behind closed doors in Brussels, with some ministers accusing Orban's government of using the issue for ⁠political gain ahead of a tough election in April.

RUSSIA HITS ODESSA Russia has been relentlessly targeting Ukraine's power grid and energy system in nightly drone and missile attacks, arguing such infrastructure is a legitimate target because it helps the war effort. Kyiv, which has also struck Russian oil infrastructure, ⁠says Moscow's aim is to break the national will by freezing Ukrainians in ⁠their homes.

Ukraine's emergency services said two people were killed and three wounded overnight in the latest drone attacks that hit the southern Odesa region. Ukraine's Infrastructure Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said Russia had attacked port infrastructure there. Russian state news agency RIA, citing the country's Defence Ministry, said Moscow's forces had carried out successful strikes on Ukrainian transport, energy and fuel infrastructure.