Hungary is racing against time to avoid power outages and fuel shortages after Ukraine imposed a partial ban on Russian oil passing through its territory,
Politico reports.
Kyiv last month imposed sanctions blocking the transit of pipeline crude sold by Moscow’s largest private oil firm, Lukoil, to Central Europe — partially negating an exemption to sanctions set up by the European Union to give Russian-reliant countries extra time to wean off supplies.
Ukraine's aim is to throttle a key source of revenue for the Kremlin’s war chest more than two years after its full-scale invasion of the country.
But the move is sparking fears of supply shortages in Budapest, which relies on Russia for 70 percent of its oil imports — and Lukoil for half that amount.
“The Ukrainian measures could create a severe situation,” Ilona Gizińska, a researcher and Hungary expert at the Centre for Eastern Studies think tank, said. She added that Hungarians could face sky-high energy prices and electricity shortages in just “weeks” unless it finds a solution.
According to the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air think tank, Hungary spent almost a quarter of a billion euros on Russian crude and gas in April this year alone.
On Friday, Budapest’s top diplomat Péter Szijjártó said Ukraine's measure could threaten Hungary's long-term energy security, slamming Kyiv for the move.
“Ukrainian authorities showed willingness to find a solution to the situation, but these attempts have faded since,” he said.
At a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov earlier in the week, Szijjártó argued the country had begun talks with Moscow to find alternative supplies of Russian oil.
“There is a new legal situation in Ukraine now, on the basis of which Lukoil is currently not making deliveries to Hungary,” he said Tuesday. “We are now working on a legal solution ... because Russian oil is important from the perspective of our energy security.”
