Aaron Schwartz / EPA
Viktor Orbán is Donald Trump
Hungary can buy oil from Russia, Donald Trump lets him – but there are different versions on the matter.
Viktor Orbán disse que a Hungary received “general” and “indefinite” exemptions from US sanctions on two major Russian oil companies.
“Hungary will continue to have the lowest energy prices. We received a exemption for the oil pipelines from Türkiye and Druzhba (Friendship)”, declared the Prime Minister, after a meeting in Washington with US President Donald Trump.
“This is a general agreement without a fixed term“, reinforced Orbán. At the beginning of the meeting at the White House, Trump said he was analyzing the possibility of Hungary continuing to buy oil and gas from Russia, despite the sanctions on Moscow.
“We are analyzing the situation, [os húngaros] they are having difficulty obtaining oil and gas from other regions,” Trump told reporters.
The North American leader commented that Hungary “is a great country, but it has no sea, no ports and, therefore, faces a difficult problem” in obtaining fuel sources elsewhere.
Only 1 year
However, hours later, a different version emerged regarding the exemption period.
Hungary will be able to continue buying oil and natural gas from Russia for at least another year, an official from the United States (USA) Presidency told news agency France-Presse (AFP).
Budapest received a exemption, this valid for one year onlyof the North American sanctions on the aforementioned two major Russian oil companies, the person responsible told AFP, who asked not to be identified.
In return, Hungary committed to purchasing approximately 600 million dollars (519 million euros) in liquefied natural gas from the USA, the same source added.
The White House fountain, thus contradicts Orbán and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Peter Szijjarto, who assured that “the United States has granted Hungary an unlimited exemption from sanctions on Russian oil and gas”.
Hungary, which opposes the sanctions applied to Russia since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine and which maintains good relations with Moscow, is highly dependent on imports of Russian gas and crude oil, from which it acquires 85% and 65%, respectively, of its consumption.
Ukraine’s “miracle”
These announcements came on the day of the meeting, held on Friday in Washington between the North American President, Donald Trump, and the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán.
While speaking to journalists, Trump asked Orbán: “Would you say that Ukraine cannot win this war?”
Orbán responded: “A miracle could happen.”
The Prime Minister of Hungary justified his response: “There is no union because Brussels (headquarters of the European Union) and Europa he has different approaches in relation to war.”
Therefore, continued Viktor Orbán, “the only governments pro-peace are the government of USA and the little one Hungaryin Europe. All other governments prefer to continue the war because many think that Ukraine can win from the front line – they are seeing it wrong the situation”, he warned.
Donald Trump believes that the war will end “and not in the not too distant future”. Orbán has “some ideas” that he would present to the US president.
