Hungary and Slovakia plan to oppose the European Commission’s initiative to halt imports of gas, oil, and nuclear fuel from Russia. This position will be voiced at the EU energy ministers’ meeting scheduled for June 16 in Luxembourg. This was announced by Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Péter Szijjártó.
During a conversation with Slovakia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Juraj Blanár, Szijjártó coordinated the positions of both countries regarding this European Commission initiative.
“We agreed that we cannot accept such a blatant violation of our sovereignty. The formation of national energy policy is a matter of sovereignty, and no one from outside can interfere with it. We are not willing to exchange our existing energy sources for more expensive and less certain ones for the sake of Brussels or Kyiv!”
– Péter Szijjártó
Szijjártó also noted that abandoning supplies of Russian energy carriers could lead to increased utility costs for Hungarian families. He claims that the European Commission might use these funds to “continue the war,” without specifying that Russia is the aggressor in the conflict with Ukraine.
Earlier, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico spoke out against the new, 18th EU sanctions package against Russia unless a clear plan for energy security is provided. According to him, Slovakia could face a crisis situation if energy supplies from Russia are completely cut off.
The European Commission confirmed that it will discuss Slovakia’s “concerns” about the possible consequences of stopping Russian energy supplies to the EU with Slovak representatives.
On June 10, the EU announced the preparation of a new sanctions package against Russia, which will include restrictions on Nord Stream 1 and 2, as well as on companies involved in oil extraction and export, Rosatom and its top management, and vessels belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet transporting oil.