Hungary's prime minister: Give up Russian energy would bring down Hungarian economy

“I told the US president that, if Hungary is cut off from Russian oil and gas, immediately, within a minute, Hungary's economy will drop by four percent”, the Orbán said during an interview for Hungarian state television, the AP reported.

This would be catastrophic, our economy would drop”, he added.

Hungary is one of the few countries in Europe that still buys energy from Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022.

Trump had asked this month that all NATO member states, including Hungary, stop oil purchases from Russia, arguing that war could be ended if Russian energy imports are banned.

The Hungarian prime minister said there is no need for debate on Hungary's energy imports.

It is clear what is in Hungary's interest and we will act in line with this”, he said.

Orbán also stressed that Hungary is a sovereign country and does not need to accept the arguments or interests of others.

Although the European Union is trying to distance member states from Russian energy, Hungarian officials say geographic positions and lack of infrastructure make it difficult to switch to alternative sources from the West.

However, other countries in the region, such as the Czech Republic, which also has no access to sea, have managed to fully ban the purchase of Russian oil since the start of the war.

Slovakia, Hungary's neighbour, continues to buy energy from Russia.