Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán proposed an unusual approach to continue gas transit through Ukraine, despite current imports through the Turkish Stream pipeline. According to him, Hungary does not refuse to use the Ukrainian route for gas transit, Budapest continues negotiations with Kyiv and Moscow regarding the preservation of this transit route, even though gas is now supplied through the Turkish Stream pipeline. Orban told about this during the briefing, it is reported Reuters.
“We are now trying a trick… that if the gas, when it enters the territory of Ukraine, would no longer be Russian, but would be owned by the buyers. Thus, the gas that enters Ukraine will no longer be Russian, but will Hungarian”, Orban said.
At the same time, he emphasized that the results of the negotiations remain uncertain, as they will depend on the positions of both Ukraine and Russia. However, Hungary is interested in preserving the Ukrainian route for transit.
According to Reuters, this year Hungary imported about 7.5 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia via Turkish Stream, and additional volumes via Romania. At the same time, the country’s own production is approximately 1-1.5 billion cubic meters.
Currently, the contract for the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, signed between Naftogaz and Gazprom, is coming to an end. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, recently stated that Kyiv is ready to provide gas transit to Europe only on the condition that this gas is not of Russian origin.
