Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto had a phone call with his Bulgarian counterpart Georg Georgiev on January 22, Hungary Today reported.
During the talks, Bulgaria said it would continue to supply gas to Hungary via the TurkStream pipeline. This is important because Hungary receives most of its gas consumption through this pipeline.
According to a statement from the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Minister Szijjarto said that countries along the TurkStream gas pipeline route must continue to ensure gas transportation.
"My new Bulgarian colleague has assured me that this country will be a reliable partner in ensuring gas transit. This is something I particularly welcome in the context of recent physical, political and financial attacks on this pipeline," he said.
Minister Szijjarto and his Bulgarian counterpart reaffirmed their commitment to further developing bilateral relations.
"My colleague thanks Hungary for supporting Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen area. Hungary also supports Bulgaria's accession to the OECD. And we appreciate the Bulgarian community living in our country," Minister Szijjarto shared on Facebook.
He said the two sides agreed on the need to continue the fight against illegal migration. The two diplomats also agreed that immediate peace in the region would benefit Central Europe.
Hungary receives Russian gas under long-term contracts with Russia's Gazprom via the TurkStream gas pipeline as well as its branches running through Bulgaria and Serbia.
In 2022, Hungary received 4.8 billion cubic meters of gas via this pipeline. According to Hungarian data, the amount of gas increased to 5.6 billion cubic meters in 2023 and 7.6 billion cubic meters in 2024. Hungary's total gas imports are around 9 billion cubic meters per year.
