BUDAPEST — Any attack on the TurkStream gas pipeline will be an act of terrorism, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.

Speaking to state media, Orban said Budapest will “respond accordingly” if there is any attack on the pipeline, which carries gas from Russia to Türkiye and further to European countries, including Hungary.

Russia has recently accused Ukraine of trying to damage the TurkStream pipeline.

The Kremlin announced on Thursday that several people were arrested for trying to blow up a part of the pipeline on Russian territory.

President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that it was part of several “terrorist attacks” carried out by Ukrainian special services targeting Russia’s critical infrastructure, including energy systems.

Russia and other regional countries are also on alert following recent leaks at the Nord Stream gas pipelines and oil leak from the Druzhba pipeline in Poland.

On the war in Ukraine, Orban stressed the need for Moscow and Kyiv to reach a cease-fire and start peace talks as soon as possible.

As long as the war continues and the West responds to it with sanctions, inflation and energy prices will not come down, he warned.

He criticized the EU’s push for sanctions against Russia, saying Hungary is feeling their fallout despite the exemptions it has been afforded by the bloc. — Agencies