Budapest’s reluctance to extend a series of EU sanctions against Russia in recent days has fueled discussions among member states about the need to strip Hungary of its right to vote in key decisions. About this informs Financial Times.
The day before, the EU ambassadors held long discussions with the Hungarian representative in Brussels, who demanded that Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman and seven other people be removed from the list of sanctions. Otherwise, Budapest threatened to block the extension of part of the anti-Russian sanctions for another six months.
Faced with the risk that some 2,000 sanctioned individuals, including Vladimir Putin, could escape sanctions due to Hungary’s veto, 26 countries agreed to remove three individuals from the list, with one more removed a week earlier. However, Hungary’s latest attempt to blackmail other countries to obtain favorable conditions for the Kremlin has pushed the patience of European capitals to the limit.
“Many officials are once again openly discussing the possibility of applying the Article 7 procedure against Hungary – the nuclear option of depriving a member state of its right to vote – but at the same time they are fully aware of the political challenges and consequences of such a step.” – the message says.
Not extending the sanctions could effectively unfreeze up to 30% of frozen Russian assets, estimated to be around €60 billion.
