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Germany issued unprecedented open threat against Hungary, FM Szijjártó says
Germany has issued an unprecedented open threat against Hungary over the Government’s stance on the Ukrainian oil blockade, but ministers insist they will not abandon the defence of national interests or allow Ukrainians to triple the energy bills of Hungarian families, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó declared in Brussels on Monday.
German warning of grave repercussions
According to the ministry, Mr Szijjártó described as without precedent what transpired at the EU foreign affairs council meeting, claiming his German counterpart delivered “a very coarse, open and shameless threat”. The German minister warned of severe consequences should Hungary’s Government forsake its national interests and refuse to approve the €90 billion war loan for Ukraine or the steps required for its EU accession, the Hungarian News Agency wrote.
“This blunt Berlin threat over Hungary’s defence of its national interests was made crystal clear by the German foreign minister today,” he stated. “It is abundantly evident that the Brussels-Berlin-Kiev axis seeks a change of government in Hungary, as it wishes to drag Europe into war – and our sovereign national Government stands in the way of that axis,” he continued.
Focus on utility bill protections
Without mincing words, Mr Szijjártó said the German minister had threatened Hungary openly and aggressively: abandon the representation of national interests and cease blocking key Ukrainian decisions unconditionally, or face dire repercussions. “We shall not yield on defending national interests, no matter the German foreign minister’s menaces. We will not tolerate Ukraine’s oil blockade jeopardising Hungary’s energy supply, nor allow it to triple Hungarian families’ utility costs. We shall protect Hungarian families, low energy prices and Hungary itself,” he affirmed. He further condemned the “war fanaticism” prevailing in Brussels, where long-term plans appear to envisage perpetual conflict, with no expectation of peace in Ukraine this year.
Oil blockade’s political roots
The meeting began with the Ukrainian foreign minister joining remotely, at which point Mr Szijjártó outlined Hungary’s position first: Ukraine has blockaded Hungarian oil supplies for nearly 50 days, for purely political reasons. “Zelensky wants to form a government in Hungary too. They are interfering in our parliamentary elections, aiming to engineer an oil and petrol crisis, a 1,000-forint petrol price, to bolster the Tisza Party’s chances,” he cautioned.
It’s always the same external enemies (the EU, the West, Brussels, and more recently Germany, etc.), but Russia never appears on the list!
Perhaps we should also let the other side have its say. As a reminder, the Europeans wanted to present a united front – and once again, they didn’t. Viktor Orbán initially blocked the European Union’s (EU) 20th sanctions package against Russia. Furthermore, the Hungarian Prime Minister is preventing €90 billion in financial aid for Ukraine from being disbursed.
The latter is particularly infuriating. Orbán had previously negotiated an exception for his country: Hungary was to be exempt from the joint borrowing. “I am not in a position to agree to any decision that is advantageous for Ukraine,” Orbán stated unequivocally in a letter to EU Council President Antonia Costa. The letter was circulated via Orbán’s social media profiles.
Since Russia’s attack on all of Ukraine in February 2022, Budapest has reliably delayed aid to the beleaguered country. Orbán also refuses to allow arms shipments to the Ukrainian armed forces through Hungarian territory – Hungary borders Ukraine. At the same time, Budapest maintains its ties with Moscow. Hungary continues to import raw materials from Russia, and Hungarian government officials, contrary to the stance of almost all other European governments, maintain close contacts with Moscow.
Until now, or so it seemed, the Europeans had come to terms with this policy of obstruction by Hungary – which has been joined by Slovakia since 2023. The EU was ultimately always able to find a way to support Ukraine – or to rely on Orbán eventually giving in.
But this time, the outrage over the Hungarian Prime Minister’s behavior is particularly intense. “It’s time this man’s funding was cut off – and his voting rights in the European Council were revoked,” Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, MEP for the FDP and Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Security and Defence, told WELT. Revoking a member state’s voting rights is possible under Article 7 of the EU Treaty if a serious and persistent breach of the EU’s fundamental values is established. In this case, the country in question would no longer be allowed to participate in decision-making, but would remain a member of the Union.
It is unacceptable that Hungary is blocking a decision to which it had previously agreed – “and on a day that commemorates four years of extensive Russian aggression. It truly makes me sick,” said Sweden’s EU Minister Jessica Rosencrantz.
Poland’s Foreign Minister, Radosław Sikorski, criticized: “This escalation effectively benefits Putin and undermines European unity at a time when we need it most.”
Orbán is likely also motivated by domestic political reasons for his actions. On April 12, Hungarians will elect a new parliament – and the Prime Minister’s governing coalition is trailing significantly in the polls against the opposition party Tisza (Respect and Freedom Party).
Four years ago, he surprised observers during the election campaign with an anti-Ukrainian campaign in the final stretch – and it was successful. The fear among many people that the war could spread to Hungary, coupled with the claim that Ukraine wanted to drag Hungary into a war with Russia, intensified the desire to vote for the familiar – namely, Orbán’s Fidesz party.
If Orbán manages to resolve the dispute before election day, he can also claim it as a victory. It is expected that the crude oil will not flow again until after the election – and also that Orbán, if still in office, will then lift his blockade. The Ukrainians claim to be repairing the pipeline, and the EU Commission is also advocating for its resumption.
But the political damage has been done – and the impression remains that Europe’s ability to act in times of geopolitical upheaval and crisis is limited or delayed.
And the Hungarian Foreign Minister also fails to answer one question: why are only Hungary and Russia allowed to issue threats? Others are apparently forbidden from doing so?
The answer is quite simple: the Hungarian government has no alternatives and must base its election campaign on the population’s fear, hoping that this will lead voters to rally behind Orbán. For this, they even need professional Russian propagandists and trolls, because they apparently don’t trust themselves to do it alone.
Nothing new from him, the same old Fidesz zealot!
😴😴😴
It is astonishing that this guy–who, by the way, is a totally nondescript nonentity–and all the other technocratic “leaders” (LOL!) like him are so zealous about fighting for Ukraine’s interests while selling the European future down the river of Net Zero, globalist, mass migration, socialist zealotry.
Absolute scumbags.
Zelensky is a puppet on a string who, on orders from his entourage, is literally throwing oil on the fire! Chancellor Merz had clear ties with the American asset manager BlackRock! He was Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the German branch (Aufsichtsratchef) BlackRock Asset Management Deutschland AG from 2016 to 2020. In addition to his supervisory role, he also acted as a lobbyist for BlackRock in Germany. In March 2020, he resigned from his positions to pursue his ambition to become Chancellor of Germany! You doesn’t have to be particularly smart to realize that there is a conflict of interest to be found between the financial sector and the public interest! BlackRock has also been closely involved in Ukraine, by the way! In 2023, Zelensky and BlackRock executive Larry Fink agreed that the company would advise the Ukrainian government “pro bono” on setting up the Ukraine Development Fund.Nothing is free in this world, and anyone who believes that is naive! Although active fundraising was paused, Larry Fink still participated in an American-Ukrainian working group in early 2026 to “talk” about long-term economic action plans! Ursula von der Leyen’s name is mentioned in the same breath as the asset manager due to decision-making by the European Commission under her leadership! The points of contact with VDL are: Controversial consultancy contract for a study into the integration of sustainability goals (ESG) into European banking regulations! BlackRock’s lobbying activities in Brussels! They are one of the active lobbyists and hold regular consultations with high-ranking officials of the European Commission regarding legislation that affects the financial sector! The digital euro and the will of 7 countries to introduce it more quickly? The President of the ECB, the European Central Bank, Lagarde, supposedly has no direct business ties with BlackRock? BlackRock is a huge player (shadow banking) and the company’s influence is (in)direct under the policy frameworks set by Lagarde and the ECB! A smoke screen is being put up here too! Moral of the story: The fish always rots from the head, and the EU citizen gets screwed!