Hungary signed new agreements on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, to ensure its continued access to Russian energy, a sign of the country’s continuing diplomatic and trade ties with Moscow amid the war in Ukraine.
Speaking at a news briefing in Moscow, Hungarian Foreign Minister, Peter Szijjarto disclosed that Russian state energy company, Gazprom had agreed to allow Hungary, if needed, to import quantities of natural gas beyond the amounts agreed to in a long-term contract that was amended last year.
The price of the gas, which would reach Hungary through the Turkstream pipeline, would be capped at 150 euros ($163) per cubic meter, Szijjarto said, part of an agreement that will allow Hungary to pay down gas purchases on a deferred basis if market prices go above that level.
Szijjarto’s trip to Russia’s capital was unusual for an official from a European Union country. Most members of the 27-nation bloc have distanced themselves from Russian President Vladimir Putin over his invasion of Ukraine and sought to wean their countries off of Russian fossil fuels.
However, the Hungarian government has lobbied heavily in the EU to be exempted from any sanctions imposed on Russian gas, oil or nuclear fuel, and also has threatened to veto proposed EU actions against Moscow.
Hungary is heavily reliant on Russian oil and gas and has argued that the EU oil boycott would be an “atomic bomb” for its economy and destroy its “stable energy supply.” The country gets 85% of its natural gas and more than 60% of its oil from Russia.
Since taking power in 2010, Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban has deepened Hungary’s dependency on Russian energy and has said that the country’s geography and energy infrastructure make a shutdown of Russian oil impossible.
The landlocked country has no seaport to receive global oil shipments and must rely on pipelines. Moreover, a flagship government program to reduce utility bills depends on the relatively low cost of Russian fossil fuels and is a major factor underlying Orban’s domestic political support.
Last year, Orban stated that converting Hungary’s oil refineries and pipelines to process oil from non-Russian sources would take five years and require a massive investment. That would further escalate high energy prices, leading to shutdowns and unemployment, he iterated.
Access To Russian Energy Crucial For Hungary’s Security
During the news briefing, Szijjarto insisted that access to Russian energy supplies was crucial for Hungary’s security regardless of political considerations brought on by the war.
“As long as the issue of energy supply is a physical issue and not a political or ideological one, like it or not, Russia and cooperation with Russia will remain crucial for Hungary’s energy security.”
Peter Szijjarto
Also, Szijjarto met with Russian Deputy Prime Minister for Energy, Alexander Novak and the Chief Executive of Russian state nuclear energy company, Rosatom; Alexey Likhachev.
The Hungarian Foreign Minister is one of the only officials from a European Union member country to have met with Russian officials in Moscow since the war in Ukraine began more than a year ago.
A February trip also made the Minister the first senior official from an EU country to visit Belarus since the nation’s authoritarian President, Alexander Lukashenko, an ally of Vladimir Putin, initiated a harsh crackdown on opposition in 2020.
