Will the EU adopt an oil embargo without Hungary?

Germany is ready to support an EU oil embargo even without Hungary, asserted German Vice-Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck in an interview on Monday.

An EU oil embargo without Hungary?

German Vice-Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck, a member of the German Green Party, shared his views in an interview on Monday. Habeck is dismayed by the delay concerning the introduction of the Russian oil embargo. He also pointed out in the interview on public radio that the negotiations and talks are being led by the European Commission.

“If the 26 of us consent to it, even if with the exception of Hungary, it’s a path I would always support,”

said the German Chancellor. Habeck stressed that sanctions against Russia have been effective so far. The Russian central bank governor claimed that Russia is near bankruptcy, index.hu reports. Russia is now operating at the same level of economic development as in 1980, the German Chancellor added.

Read also: Is a serious Hungarian-Romanian conflict on the horizon?

What is Hungary’s position on the issue?

In the past, Germany also opposed the oil embargo. Now it has backed the decision on the condition that the EU gives member states enough time to switch from Russian oil to alternative energy sources. Germany had previously indicated that it would reduce the amount of oil it imports from Russia to 12 percent.

Orbán has written a letter to the President of the European Commission.

The Hungarian Prime Minister said the planned package would add to the burden of the most vulnerable. According to Orbán, the EU is ignoring these facts and refuses to help. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said earlier that

the Hungarian government will never allow people to pay the price of the war.

German Social Democrat Katarina Barley, Vice-President of the European Parliament, also believes that the EU should initiate an oil embargo against Russia. She believes that the situation is not ideal without Hungary’s involvement. However, the only way to convince Viktor Orbán is to give him €18 billion in aid, which is not a realistic option. Barley also believes that

a significant share of the funding would end up in the pockets of Orbán’s friends.

Barley points out that the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Bulgaria would be also badly affected if the oil embargo was implemented. However, none of these countries oppose the idea of an embargo. On the contrary, they are open to finding a suitable solution, rtl.hu reports.