Hungary spoils EU attempt at Russia sanctions package over oil flows
Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who maintains close ties with the Kremlin, has long argued that Russian fossil fuels are indispensable for his economy
Hungary threatened to block a new package of European Union sanctions against Russia and to stall efforts to help Ukraine until Russian oil deliveries to Hungary resume.
The EU’s foreign ministers are set to meet in Brussels on Monday to discuss the bloc’s 20th round of sanctions against Moscow, a measure they hope will be approved in time to coincide with the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Tuesday.
In a video posted to social media on Sunday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said he would block the sanctions package, accusing Ukraine of deliberately holding back Russian oil deliveries through the Druzhba pipeline.
“We will not consent to the adoption of the 20th package of sanctions, because we have previously made it clear that until the Ukrainians resume oil shipments to Hungary, we will not allow decisions that are important to them to be approved,” Szijjártó said.
Russian oil shipments to Hungary and Slovakia have been interrupted since January 27 after what Ukrainian officials say were Russian drone attacks that damaged the Druzhba pipeline, which carries Russian crude across Ukrainian territory and into Central Europe, leading to rising tensions between Budapest and Kyiv.
For the sanctions to pass, the 27-nation bloc needs to reach a unanimous decision.