US grants Hungary waiver on Russian gas, oil purchases

“The waiver is for one year, following an agreement to buy American liquefied natural gas.

 

The United States on Friday granted Budapest a one-year waiver on sanctions for buying Russian oil and gas after talks at the White House between President Donald Trump and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

 

Trump imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies in October after losing patience with Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin over his refusal to end his nearly four-year invasion of Ukraine.

 

But while Trump has urged European countries to stop buying Russian oil, which he says funds Moscow’s war machine, Orban used his first trip to the White House since Trump took office to urge Washington to grant him special treatment.

 

The two leaders have been sparing no time in praise, Trump said he was considering an exemption because landlocked Hungary has to rely on pipelines that make it dependent on Russian oil and gas.

 

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said after the meeting that Washington had granted a “full and unlimited exemption from oil and gas sanctions.”

 

But a White House official told AFP that the exemption would only apply to Hungary for a year.

 

At the time, Hungary had committed to buying about $600 million (€518.6 million) in liquefied natural gas from the United States, the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

 

Ukraine needs a miracle

 

The Hungarian prime minister has close ties with both Moscow and Washington, often at odds with the rest of the European Union (EU) over pressure on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

 

At the White House, Orbán insisted that Russian energy sources are vital to Hungary.

 

“The pipeline is not an ideological or political issue. It is a physical reality because we do not have ports,” Orbán said.

 

Washington has given companies that do business with Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil one month to cut ties or face secondary sanctions that would prevent them from using U.S. banks, traders, carriers and insurers.

 

Orbán also said that Ukraine would need a “miracle” to overcome Moscow, highlighting the gulf between him and other European leaders on the war.

Calls for respect for Hungary

 

Meanwhile, Trump has wholeheartedly supported Orbán on the important issue of migration, saying the EU should show the Hungarian leader more respect.

 

Orbán’s stance on migration is at odds with the EU. He has also refused to send military aid to Ukraine and opposes Kyiv’s bid to join the bloc, and has often clashed with Brussels over the rule of law and other issues.

 

“I think they should have great, great respect for Hungary and for this leader because he was right about immigration,” Trump told reporters.

 

Trump, who has been waging a sweeping campaign of immigration control in his country, has again made claims about a link between migrants and crime that U.S. statistics don’t support.

 

Washington has lifted sanctions on Orban’s top aide, Antal Rogan, and restored the country’s visa-free status.

 

But Trump’s tariffs on the EU have hit Hungary’s export-oriented auto industry hard, adding to the challenges of an already weak economy.

 

Experts said the meeting with the US president should provide at least a symbolic victory for Orban, who faces an unprecedented challenge in 15 years in elections next spring.”