Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Slovakia, Hungary will not support EU sanctions on Russian energy

Slovakia, Hungary will not support EU sanctions on Russian energy

It is not yet clear whether Slovakia and Hungary would receive exemptions.
Slovakia and Hungary have said they will not support sanctions against Russian energy that the European Union is preparing over the war in Ukraine, saying they are too reliant on those supplies and there are no immediate alternatives.

EU commissioners are debating new proposals for sanctions, which could include a phased-in embargo on Russian oil. The 27 member countries are likely to start discussing them on Wednesday, but it could be several days before the measures take effect and it is not clear if oil would be among them or Slovakia and Hungary would receive exemptions.

Slovak Economy Minister Richard Sulik said on Tuesday the country’s sole refiner, Slovnaft, cannot immediately switch from Russian crude to another kind of oil. Changing the technology would take several years, Sulik said.

“So, we will insist on the exemption, for sure,” Sulik told reporters.

Slovakia’s almost fully dependent on Russian oil it receives through the Soviet-era Druzhba pipeline. Hungary is also heavily reliant, though other major energy importers like Germany said it could cope if the EU banned Russian oil, with officials still noting “it is a heavy load to bear”.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said the country will not vote for any sanctions “that will make the transport of natural gas or oil from Russia to Hungary impossible”.

“The point is simple, that Hungary’s energy supply cannot be endangered because no one can expect us to allow the price of the war [in Ukraine] to be paid by Hungarians,” Szijjarto said, speaking Tuesday in Kazakhstan. “It is currently physically impossible for Hungary and its economy to function without Russian oil.”

Despite disagreement among EU members on new energy sanctions, European Council President Charles Michel pledged to “break the Russian war machine” by steering countries on the continent away from Russia’s natural gas supplies.

The bloc is racing to secure alternative supplies to Russian energy, placing priority on global liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from countries that include major producers like Algeria, Qatar and the United States.

That includes LNG facilities being built in northern Greece, which Michel and the leaders of four Balkan countries toured on Tuesday.

“We are also sanctioning Russia to put financial, economic and political pressure on the Kremlin because our goal is simple: We must break the Russian war machine,” Michel said.

He met Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the leaders of Bulgaria, North Macedonia and non-NATO member Serbia at the Greek port of Alexandroupolis. An LNG import terminal near the port city is due to start operation next year.

LNG that arrives by ship is becoming increasingly important as EU countries look to move away from Russian supplies. Russia last week cut off natural gas to Bulgaria and Poland over a demand to guarantee payment in roubles, in an escalating dispute triggered by the invasion of Ukraine.

“This is why this new LNG terminal is so timely and so important. It’s a geopolitical investment and this is a geopolitical moment,” Michel said. “It reflects what we need to do more of, because it will provide security of supply to Greece, to Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Serbia and other countries in the region. And this is extremely important.”

Also at the meetings were Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov, North Macedonian Premier Dimitar Kovachevski and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

“This is not just an energy project. It will change the energy map of Europe,” Petkov said. “The Balkans is a region of 65 million people, and we can do so much more.”

The LNG terminal is designed to process some 6 billion cubic metres of gas annually, boosting the non-Russian supply that reached the region in 2020 with the new Trans Adriatic Pipeline running from Azerbaijan to Italy.

A new interconnector pipeline, fully connecting the gas networks of Greece and Bulgaria is due to launch next month.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×