The EU will be able to renew its sectoral sanctions against Russia after Hungary abandoned its veto threat, which it had linked to energy concerns.
Hungary has backed down from its veto threat and on Monday allowed the renewal of EU sanctions against Russia for an additional six months, bringing to a close the short-lived political saga that had put Brussels on edge.
The breakthrough was achieved during a meeting of foreign affairs ministers where a statement about “the integrity of the energy infrastructure” was put forward to placate Budapest’s concerns, several diplomats told Euronews.
The prolongation “will continue to deprive Moscow of revenues to finance its war. Russia needs to pay for the damage they are causing,” said High Representative Kaja Kallas.
The sectoral sanctions, which include sweeping bans on oil, coal, technology, finance, luxury goods, transport, and broadcasting, and the freezing of €210 billion in assets from Russia’s Central Bank, were due to expire on 31 January unless unanimity was found.
In the days leading up to the crucial deadline, Hungary ratcheted up its critical rhetoric, arguing Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president merited a broader rethink of the bloc’s policy and the way sanctions are renewed every six months.
Last Friday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán upped the ante when he made a direct link with an unrelated dispute that Hungary and Slovakia currently have with Ukraine over the transit of Russian gas, which Kyiv terminated at the end of 2024.
“What is closed now, has to be reopened again. This is not a matter for Ukraine, it is an issue for Europe, an issue for central Europe,” Orbán said in a radio interview.
“If the Ukrainians want help, for example sanctioning the Russians, then let’s reopen the gas transit routes and allow the central European countries, including Hungary, to receive the gas we need through Ukraine.”
Diplomats in Brussels balked at the argument, decrying Hungary’s “transactional” diplomacy, which has played out multiple times since Russia launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Hungary, however, had never before threatened to derail the entire regime of sanctions painstakingly built across 15 different packages.
“The threats are taken seriously,” a diplomat said on Friday after a meeting of EU ambassadors failed to provide a resolution.
Over the weekend, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered signs of compromise when he voiced openness to permit the transit of Azeri gas through his country, something that he had previously ruled out as a “game” that Russia could easily bypass.
“There is gas, there are supply routes from Azerbaijan. The key is having the political will to work for your people, not with Moscow for some shadowy benefit, as some figures in Eastern Europe do,” Zelenskyy said on Saturday during a press conference with Moldovan President Maia Sandu.
As landlocked countries, Hungary and Slovakia have pushed hard for the continuation of the transit through Ukraine, be it with Russian or Azeri gas, warning their national economies would be devastated by the abrupt change in energy supplies.
The European Commission, which gave tacit approval to Zelenskyy’s decision to terminate the long-term contract with Gazprom, insists the impact will be limited because the EU is well-prepared to transition away from Russian fuels.
In the statement presented to foreign affairs ministers on Monday, the Commission and the High Representative describe “the integrity of the energy infrastructure” as a “matter of EU security” that other countries should “respect.”
The non-binding text refers to consultations with Kyiv regarding gas and oil flows. It does not mention Russia or Azerbaijan.
“The Commission is ready to continue discussions with Ukraine on the supply to Europe through the gas pipeline system in Ukraine in line with Ukraine’s international obligations. In that context, the Commission is ready to associate Hungary in the process (along with Slovakia),” says the statement, as seen by Euronews.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó welcomed the Commission’s commitment to engage in further talks with Ukraine. “Hungary has received the guarantees it has requested concerning the energy security of our country,” Szijjártó said.
While this row with Budapest is over, another might be about to start: Brussels is already preparing a 16th package of sanctions against Russia, with the view to approving them before the war’s third anniversary in late February. Unanimity will be required.
This article has been updated with more details and reactions.
