Hungary said Friday it will use "every means" to resolve an escalating row with Kyiv over stalled Russian oil supplies to Budapest and Bratislava.

Tensions have flared between Budapest and Kyiv in recent weeks over a damaged oil pipeline, the Druzhba pipeline, that delivers Russian crude to Central Europe.

Hungary and Slovakia, both European Union members, accuse Kyiv of dragging out repairs for political reasons, a claim Ukraine has denied.

What did Hungary say about the escalating row with Ukraine?

Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban accused Kyiv of blackmail over oil deliveries.

"We have stopped gasoline deliveries to Ukraine, we are not delivering diesel either, we are still delivering electricity, and we will also stop things passing through Hungary, things that are important to Ukraine, until we receive Ukraine's approval for oil deliveries," Orban told state radio.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday said the pipeline needed another four to six weeks to become operational.

The head of Ukraine's state-energy firm Naftogaz Sergiy Koretsky said repair crews were working on creating a bypass around damaged sections of the pipeline but warned that the threat of Russian attacks was complicating their work.

Kyiv accuses Budapest of taking bank employees 'hostage'

On another front, with tensions escalating between the neighbors, Hungary announced it was expelling seven detained Ukrainians on suspicion of money laundering.

Kyiv on Thursday accused Budapest of taking "hostage" seven employees at a Ukrainian bank, and on Friday, advised its nationals against traveling to Hungary.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha earlier said detained Ukrainian citizens were employees at the state-owned Oschadbank.

The Ukrainian nationals were operating two bank cars transiting between Austria and Ukraine at the time of the incident.

The bank said the location of its employees was unknown, but that GPS signal data showed that their cars were in central Budapest "near one of the law enforcement agencies of Hungary."

"We are talking about Hungary taking hostages and stealing money," Sybiha added on X. "This is state terrorism and racketeering."

Hungary says it is going to expel all seven Ukrainian nationals

Hungary's National Tax and Customs Administration on Friday confirmed that seven Ukrainian citizens had been detained, including a former secret service general. 

The administration said it was "conducting criminal proceedings on suspicion of money laundering" in cooperation with the Counter-Terrorism Center.

Government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said all seven of those detained would be expelled.

"We demand immediate answers from Kyiv regarding large cash shipments passing through Hungary that raise serious questions about a possible link to the Ukrainian war mafia," Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto posted to X.

Why have Ukraine's ties with neighboring Hungary deteriorated?

Hungary and Ukraine's relations have been tense, as Orban has maintained his staunch support for Russia despite its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Ties have further deteriorated in recent months as Orban stepped up political attacks on the neighboring country, as he prepares for this year's parliamentary vote on April 12.

Orban has opposed several EU aid packages to Ukraine, as well as sanctions on Russia. Most recently, the Hungarian prime minister blocked a €90-billion ($106 billion) EU loan to Ukraine, asking that Kyiv reopen the pipeline first.

Edited by: Roshni Majumdar