At a press conference in the Austrian capital, right-wing Mr Orban, who won a massive election victory earlier this year, was asked about plans to help EU citizens use less energy.
In a firm rebuttal to the proposals, the Hungarian government’s official briefing noted: “The Prime Minister pointed out that each country determines the energy mix at national level, and Brussels should not interfere in this. At the same time, European unity is also important: “We take note of the decision, which is unfavorable for us, and will try to implement it with as little damage as possible to our country,” he said.
He later sent another warning to Ms. von der Leyen not to try to remove sovereignty from member states, noting: “The EU is not in Brussels, but in Vienna, Budapest, Madrid or Berlin.”
The response has confirmed that the EU is far from unanimous on how to handle the war in Ukraine, leading to further fears it will break in enforcing sanctions against Russia.
Currently, most of Hungary’s gas and electricity comes from Russia or Russian nuclear technology that senior government officials have admitted would “turn out the lights” if the supply were cut.
But in another part of the press conference, Mr Orban made it clear that he is now pushing for a change of strategy that would allow the EU to reach a compromise with Russia.
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On the sanctions against Russia, he noted that ‘we need to convince Brussels as soon as possible to come up with a strategy that is good for Ukrainians, for the EU and for households.’ He added that “Hungary has been able to reach an agreement with the EU on all sanctions issues”, with the only red line being the gas embargo, which must be avoided.”
Meanwhile, Chancellor Nehammer said Austria’s position is to gain independence from Russia in the energy sector, adding that he shares the Hungarian Prime Minister’s view that little practical progress has been made at EU level and that a common system for purchasing energy gas between Member States are needed.
He noted that the gas embargo was not an option either, as it would bring down German industry, which would also drag down the Austrian economy.