Orbán says Hungary in talks on gas supplies via Ukraine – Reuters

Hungary is negotiating with Russia and Ukraine to maintain gas supplies even though Russian gas is now being imported through the TurkStream pipeline, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Saturday, 21 December.

Source: Reuters

Details: Orbán added that he did not want to give up the route through Ukraine.

The pipeline running via Ukraine is one of the last major routes for Russian gas to Europe, but it is set to be closed at the end of this year, as Kyiv has refused to extend a five-year transit agreement that supplies gas to Slovakia, Czechia and Austria.

"We are now trying the trick ... that what if the gas, by the time it enters the territory of Ukraine, would no longer be Russian but would be already in the ownership of the buyers," Orbán said at a briefing. "So the gas that enters Ukraine would no longer be Russian gas but it would be Hungarian gas."

Orbán stated that negotiations are ongoing, and it remains unclear whether Russia and Ukraine will reach an agreement. However, Hungary is determined not to abandon the Ukrainian gas transit route.

Hungary imported about 7.5 billion cubic metres of Russian gas through the TurkStream pipeline this year and additional volumes through Romania. Orbán said Hungarian domestic gas production is around 1-1.5 billion cubic metres.

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