Hungary is said to have resolved most of the payment issues caused by US sanctions on Russia's Gazprombank.
Budapest and Moscow have resolved most of the issues caused by the Gazprombank sanctions - RT quoted Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto as saying at a hearing before the parliament's economic committee on December 3.
Washington's announcement of sanctions in late November led to a freeze on Russian gas payments and transit fees, disrupting supplies to Hungary and Slovakia.
"We have found solutions to three of the four problems," Foreign Minister Szijjarto told the Hungarian parliament.
Szijjarto explained that the US decision "seriously affected" payments Hungary had made to Gazprombank, including gas purchased under contracts from Gazprom, transit fees through the two neighboring countries, as well as Russian fuel for the Paks nuclear power plant.
"Those who suggest we should not buy Russian gas are either looking to make money by selling their more expensive gas, or simply do not know what the energy transport map of the world and our region looks like," Szijjarto said.
Mr. Szijjarto also noted the nature of such calls from Western European countries, which continue to buy Russian raw materials.
"Why did France increase its imports of Russian liquefied natural gas to 110% in the first half of this year? Why does 87% of Russian LNG arriving in France go to Belgium and Spain? While Russia's market share in India's oil imports has increased by 70 times, why has Germany increased its imports from India by 11 times? I wonder why that is so?" - the Foreign Minister pointed out.
"If we are talking about the country's energy security, we must take into account the reliability of supply and competitive prices, not the commercial interests of those who want to import more expensive energy sources to Hungary," Mr. Szijjarto emphasized.
He confirmed that Hungary is looking to diversify its gas supply sources and routes and has begun receiving fuel from Azerbaijan and Turkey for this purpose, but still relies on long-term contracts with Russian partners to ensure energy security.
The Hungarian Foreign Minister was in Moscow on December 2, discussing with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak and representatives of Russian energy companies.
He said that Russian partners are guaranteed to be interested in continuing gas supplies and maintaining existing agreements. Lawyers specializing in sanctions, energy and finance are finding the best way to overcome the current situation.
Hungary has a long-term contract with Gazprom and receives the majority of its gas from Russia. As of the end of October, Budapest had imported more than 6.2 billion cubic meters of Russian gas, compared to 5.6 billion in 2023 and 4.8 billion in 2022. The gas mainly passes through the TurkStream gas pipeline and its branches running through Bulgaria and Serbia.
The next energy payment to Russia is due on December 20. Hungary said it would find a solution by that date.
