Peter Szijjarto (Hungarian Foreign Minister) stated that there was no way for the EU to reduce the impact of a Russian ban on oil imports as part sanctions against Russia over the military intervention in Ukraine.
“Brussels has no proposal for a solution … which could handle the atomic bomb-like impacts of this potential oil embargo against Russia on Hungary’s economy,”Szijjarto spoke Wednesday.
The European Commission suggested last week that oil imports from Moscow be halted by the end the year. Due to Budapest’s dependence on Russian oil, the proposal was rejected by Budapest.
Szijjarto told Hungary’s parliament on Monday that the proposed sanctions were “problematic for the country.”Hungarian officials warned repeatedly that they will use their veto power against an oil embargo.
Hungary imports about 65% its oil via the Druzhba (Friendship), Russian pipeline. Szijjarto indicated that Hungary supported a ban for maritime shipments but would not support pipeline delivery, as reported by Reuters.
Politico Magazine reported Tuesday that Brussels may consider applying financial compensation mechanisms to the REPowerEU scheme. The REPowerEU scheme is intended to reduce the harm from the phasing-out of Russian energy.
“The more we can help Hungary with REPowerEU, the faster they can move away from Russian oil,”A senior EU official was quoted saying the following.
It is reported that the European Commission has also agreed to let Hungary and Slovakia continue to use Russian oil, while the Czech Republic will remain in place until the end 2024.
Russia was subject to harsh sanctions by the West. They have banned coal imports from Russia and frozen Russian assets. Moscow responded to the West by requesting that EU member countries switch to Russian rubles for paying natural gas.
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