Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary Peter Sijarto blamed Ukraine in the deterioration of the economic situation in the European Union due to the termination of transit of Russian gas.
“Since the suspension of the Ukrainian transit route became final in mid-December, the price of natural gas on the European market increased by 20%. Thus, although Ukraine is trying to join the EU as a candidate, with its latest decision it once again put the European economy in a difficult situation. This is especially true of Central Europe”, he noted.
Sijarto emphasized that even supporters of European policy in Brussels cannot deny the deterioration of the EU’s competitiveness. According to him, one of the reasons for this is high gas prices in Europe compared to other regions of the world.
He explained that the increase in natural gas prices is caused by an artificial reduction in its supplies, in particular due to sanctions, political decisions, as well as the blocking of certain transportation routes. At the same time, the minister noted that Hungary has diversified its sources of gas supply, so the European increase in energy prices will not have a significant impact on the country.
The minister also said that he discussed the situation with his Slovak colleague Juraj Blanar. They agreed that Ukraine should adhere to the association agreement with the EU, which provides for the preservation of energy routes.
“We agreed that the association agreement between the EU and Ukraine should be respected by both parties, and this agreement also provides for the preservation of energy transportation routes,” – stressed Sijarto.
At the same time, the European Commission did not confirm significant fluctuations in gas prices after Ukraine stopped the transit of Russian gas to the EU.
