Hungary claims ‘indefinite’ US sanctions waiver for Russian energy imports

Foreign curate says Budapest ‘obtained an indefinite exemption from the sanctions’ connected Russian lipid and state shipments.

Hungary’s overseas curate says Budapest has secured an indefinite waiver from US sanctions connected Russian lipid and state imports, arsenic a White House authoritative reiterated that the exemption was for lone a play of 1 year.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met President Donald Trump astatine the White House connected Friday to property for a reprieve aft the US past period imposed sanctions connected Russian lipid companies Lukoil and Rosneft.

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After the meeting, Orban told Hungarian media that Budapest had “been granted a implicit exemption from sanctions” affecting Russian state delivered to Hungary from the TurkStream pipeline, and lipid from the Druzhba pipeline.

But a White House authoritative aboriginal told the Reuters quality bureau that Hungary had been granted a one-year exemption from sanctions connected to utilizing Russian energy.

On Saturday, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said determination would beryllium nary sanctions for “an indefinite period”.

“The premier curate was clear. He has agreed with the US President [Donald Trump] that we person obtained an indefinite exemption from the sanctions,” Szijjarto wrote connected Facebook.

“There are nary sanctions connected lipid and state shipments to Hungary for an indefinite period.”

However, a White House authoritative repeated successful an email to the Reuters quality bureau connected Saturday that the exemption is for 1 year.

Hungary expected to bargain US LNG

The White House authoritative who spoke to Reuters added that Hungary would besides diversify its vigor purchases and had committed to buying US liquefied earthy state with contracts valued astatine immoderate $600m.

Orban has maintained adjacent ties with some Moscow and Washington, portion often bucking the remainder of the EU connected pressuring Russia implicit its penetration of Ukraine.

The Hungarian person offered to big a acme successful Budapest betwixt Trump and Putin, though the US person called it disconnected successful October and deed Moscow with sanctions for the archetypal clip successful his presidency.

Budapest relies heavy connected Russian energy, and Orban, 15 years successful power, faces a adjacent predetermination adjacent year.

International Monetary Fund figures amusement Hungary bought 74 percent of its state and 86 percent of its lipid from Russia successful 2024, informing that an EU-wide cutoff of Russian earthy state unsocial could outgo Hungary much than 4 percent of its GDP.

Orban said that, without the agreement, vigor costs would person surged, hitting the wider economy, pushing up unemployment and generating “unbearable” terms rises for households and firms.