Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Hungary and Türkiye considered Ukraine's attack on the TurkStream pipeline unacceptable and called on European Union (EU) leaders to act to protect the last gas pipeline route carrying Russian gas to Europe.
The information was given by Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto after a phone call with Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar.
According to the Hungarian Foreign Minister, the Turkish Energy Minister agreed that the attacks on the TurkStream pipeline were unacceptable.
“TurkStream must be protected at all costs,” said Mr. Szijjarto.
According to the Hungarian diplomat, the EU needs to stand up for the energy security of Hungary and Central Europe, and ensure that no external force can disrupt the energy security of Hungary as well as other countries in the region.
Minister Szijjarto pointed out that TurkStream plays an important role in supplying gas to Hungary.
"Gas supplies via TurkStream have not been interrupted, but physical, political and financial attacks on the pipeline continue. We need to make it clear that disruptions to the TurkStream pipeline will hinder the safe supply of gas to Central Europe," he said.
On January 13, the Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukraine of sending nine drones to attack the infrastructure of the Russkaya gas compressor station in the Krasnodar region, which pumps gas to the TurkStream pipeline. After the attack, the compressor station continued to operate as usual.
Under long-term contracts with Gazprom, Hungary receives most of its gas consumption via the TurkStream pipeline and its branches running through Bulgaria and Serbia. In 2022, 4.8 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia will arrive in Hungary via TurkStream. In 2023, that figure will rise to 5.6 billion cubic meters, and in 2024, it will reach a record high of 7.6 billion cubic meters, according to Hungarian data.
