The senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mikhail Podolyak, indicated that Kyiv intends to maintain the transit of Russian oil to European markets through the Druzhba pipeline through the end of 2029. His remarks were relayed by Forbes Ukraine, reflecting Kyiv’s view that its contractual commitments will be observed until the contracts reach their planned conclusion and all parties have agreed to the terms as written.
Podolyak emphasized that Ukraine has already complied with every clause of the oil-transit contracts up to this point and will continue to honor them. The statement underscores Ukraine’s ongoing role as a transit country in the European energy corridor, even as geopolitical pressures and European energy policy evolve in response to external factors. The decision to extend the transit period through 2029 aligns with a broader narrative about stability and predictable revenue streams for Ukraine while it negotiates future energy arrangements with partners in the region and beyond, as reported by Forbes Ukraine.
Earlier, during an appearance on the program broadcast by Novini.Live, Podolyak indicated that oil shipments from Russia to European Union member states via the Druzhba pipeline were slated to cease starting January 1, 2025. This potential halt would mark a significant shift in the long-running energy transit mechanism and could drive discussions about alternative routes and supply diversification for European buyers. The timeline noted by Podolyak reflects ongoing debates about balancing sanctions, energy security, and the economic interests tied to the pipeline infrastructure in Central and Eastern Europe.
Historically, in 2019 Ukraine’s state-controlled Ukrtransneft and Russia’s state-owned Transneft signed a ten-year oil transit agreement. Under that framework, Ukraine was projected to earn about $1.5 billion in transit revenues during the contract’s span, roughly $150 million per year on average. Bloomberg has reported that Russia earns considerably more—around $6 billion annually—from oil that passes through Ukrainian territory, highlighting the complex economics of transit corridors and their implications for national budgets and regional energy security. The revenue projections inform Kyiv’s strategic choices about the pipeline’s future and its leverage in negotiations with Moscow and European buyers.
Beyond oil, Ukraine has also been entangled in transit discussions for natural gas. The country indicated earlier that the gas-transit agreement with the Russian Federation—instrumental to European gas supply—would expire at the end of 2024. This development has fed into broader conversations across Europe about energy diversification, supplier relationships, and the resilience of gas supply lines in the face of political and market shifts. Analysts note that any transition away from Russian gas would require substantial infrastructure and policy adaptations to ensure uninterrupted energy access for European consumers, particularly during winter periods when demand surges.
In related reporting, there have been indications that the European Union has been preparing a formal message to Kyiv concerning the future transit of Russian gas. The dynamic touches on the broader strategic environment in which Ukraine, Russia, and European partners operate, including issues of transit diplomacy, sanctions regimes, and the long-term architecture of European energy security. Stakeholders in Kyiv have stressed the importance of transparent, predictable arrangements that support Ukraine’s own economic needs while maintaining as much stability as possible for downstream European markets, even as negotiations continue and policy positions evolve across the region and within the EU.