Hungary urges Russia for additional gas supply, Lavrov says 'will consider the request'

Despite stringent EU sanctions, Hungary has requested Russia to supply it with almost a billion cubic meters of natural gas. On Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow will “immediately forward and study Budapest’s demand". Notably, the announcement comes on the same day as Moscow’s restart of gas flow into Europe through its Nord Stream Pipeline 1.

European Union member Hungary has maintained what it calls pragmatic relations with Moscow since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, creating tensions with some EU allies keen to take a tougher line. On Thursday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto landed in Moscow to concretize his country’s energy supply. Talking about the additional supply he said, “Looking at the current market situation, like it or not ... without Russian sources, it would not be possible to buy an additional 700 million cubic meters of gas,” Szijjarto said.

He added, "In the current international situation, the most important thing for us is to ensure Hungary's energy security. Therefore, I would like to talk today and agree on increasing the volumes of gas already supplied to Hungary from Russia."

'Will discuss Ukraine war', says Szijjarto

At present, Hungary receives 3.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) of Russian gas per year via Bulgaria and Serbia, and a further 1 bcm via a pipeline from Austria. Meanwhile, Szijjarto, who also held talks with Russian Deputy Prime Minister- for Fuel Energy complex Alexander Novak, said that he would also use the opportunity to discuss the Ukraine war  "from the point of view of the interests of the Hungarian national minority," as well as "our vision of how our special military operation is developing."

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Nord Stream 1- a significant pipeline carrying natural gas from Russia to Europe-started operating. However, the gas deliveries on Thursday were only about 30% of the pipeline's capacity. Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that Russian energy giant Gazprom remains committed to fulfilling its obligations toward supplying gas to other nations. He refuted the statements made by Western officials about Russia's attempts to pressurise Europe in the energy sector and called the allegations "false statements."

(Image: mfa_russia/Twitter)