00:00As the old Hollywood rule goes, attributed to Alfred Hitchcock, a good thriller starts
00:06with an explosion, followed by a rising tension.
00:09In the crisis between Hungary and Ukraine, the explosion was a literal pipeline.
00:15And last week, tension reached a breaking point, when the Hungarian anti-terror police
00:19raided a Ukrainian state bank convoy carrying cash and gold.
00:24And in response, Kiev accused Budapest of taking its citizens hostage.
00:27But wait a second, how did we actually get here?
00:32Since late January, the Druzhba pipeline has been down.
00:36Kiev blames Russia for the explosion and refuses to repair the damage, halting Russian oil to
00:42Hungary and Slovakia.
00:44Budapest, on the other side, accuses Kiev of exploding the disruption.
00:48And, in retaliation, is blocking a critical 90 billion euro EU loan to Ukraine.
00:54But escalation did not stop at financial vetoes.
00:57Orban vowed to break the oil blockade by force, though he did not explain how.
01:03And Ukraine's president fired Park, suggesting he would give Ukrainian troops Orban's phone number.
01:10And Hungary condemned the remark as a death threat.
01:14But you see, there is also a bigger picture.
01:17Both leaders are racing against brutal April deadlines.
01:20And if the Ukraine loan is not unblocked by early April, the country will run out of money,
01:26facing devastating cuts to public services.
01:30Meanwhile, Orban faces divisive elections on the 12th of April.
01:34And opposing Ukraine is his strategy to win.
01:37That leaves the EU rushing to break the veto and deliver the cash before Ukraine goes broke,
01:43while trying not to look like it's picking a side in Hungary.
01:47But finding that balance is really hard when this political thriller is building toward its breaking points.
01:54So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
01:59So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
02:00So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
02:02So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
02:03So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
02:04So take a deep breath, because the final scene is about to begin.
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