MOSCOW, July 19 Ukraine is not interested in completely blocking the transit of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline, not only because of revenues, but also because it could result in a shortage of oil products , commented Igor Yushkov, an expert at the Financial University and the National Energy Security Fund.
Earlier this week, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó announced the cessation of Lukoil oil supplies through Ukraine via the Druzhba oil pipeline. The Ministry of Economy of Slovakia also confirmed on Thursday that the republic had stopped receiving oil from Lukoil due to Ukraine stopping its transit through its territory. The department spoke about the reason — Lukoil was included in the sanctions list in Ukraine, and also stated that Slovnaft was provided with supplies of Russian oil from another supplier. 
“I think that Ukraine will not completely block transit, because it is harmful for itself. In particular, they will not receive money for oil transit. Plus, they receive oil products from Eastern European countries. That is, if they do not allow oil, then there may be a certain shortage of petroleum products on the market; accordingly, these countries will keep all the petroleum products for themselves, because they themselves will not have enough,” Yushkov said.
He noted that the main supplier of petroleum products for Ukraine is still Poland, but Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic also supply petroleum products to the Ukrainian market. 
According to the expert, Lukoil is also interested in preserving this market. “He can redirect these volumes that were supplied via the Druzhba oil pipeline to alternative sales markets, but this will be shipping by sea, and it is more expensive. Selling via the Druzhba oil pipeline is a more marginal method of delivery, the company will have more money left over,” — explained the agency's interlocutor.
Western sanctions in December 2022 banned oil supplies from Russia by sea to the European Union. Exceptions were made for supplies via the Druzhba pipeline because several landlocked countries would have difficulty finding alternative suppliers. However, the transportation of Russian oil to Poland via Druzhba was stopped at the end of February 2023. Russian oil has not been pumped through the pipeline to Germany since the beginning of 2023.
The Druzhba oil pipeline originates in Almetyevsk, passes through Bryansk and then branches into two sections: northern (through the territory of Belarus in the direction of Poland and Germany) and southern (through the territory of Ukraine in the direction of Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic). 