Hungary has no intention of suspending Russian oil imports despite pressure on the whole of the European Union from U.S. President Donald Trump and EU pressure on Hungary specifically.
“We can’t ensure the safe supply [of energy products] for our country without Russian oil or gas sources,” Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto told The Guardian today, on the sidelines of the latest United Nations plenary session in New York.
“For us, energy supplies are a purely physical question,” he said. “It can be nice to dream about buying oil and gas from somewhere [besides Russia] … but we can only buy from where we have infrastructure,” Szijjarto continued, adding that “if you look at the physical infrastructure, it’s obvious that without the Russian supplies, it is impossible to ensure the safe supply of the country.”
Hungary imports about 5 million tons of crude oil from Russia annually via its state energy company MOL. It is one of two direct buyers of Russian crude in the EU. President Trump earlier this month called on the EU to step up pressure on Moscow by shunning any and all hydrocarbon imports, including LNG.
Meanwhile, central EU authorities in Brussels are seeking ways to convince Hungary to do just that—give up all Russian oil supplies regardless of its infrastructure situation. Earlier this month, the Financial Times reported Brussels was considering unfreezing over half a billion euros for Hungary to help it make the decision it wants. The sum is about a quarter of EU funds for Hungary that Brussels froze three years ago, accusing Hungary of falling short on judicial system independence, discrimination, LGBTQ rights, and asylum rights, the FT recalled.
Hungary and Slovakia are the biggest Russian oil importers in the EU, at least directly. They receive the fuel via the Druzhba pipeline, built in Soviet times to supply the USSR’s Central European partners with crude. Both countries have been adamant about protecting their energy supply security, voting against sanction packages that would jeopardize that.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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