On Friday, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said the EU was dropping an “atomic bomb” on Hungary’s economy by trying to ban Russian oil in its next round of sanctions.
The EU on Wednesday proposed a plan that would phase out the use of Russian oil by EU members by the end of 2022. Due to Hungary’s objections, Budapest would have until the end of 2023 to phase out Russian oil, but Orban has rejected the plan.
“This is an atomic bomb they want to drop on the Hungarian economy,” Orban said. The EU has already enacted a phased ban on Russian coal, and Orban said the bloc shouldn’t go further than that.
“They have crossed this red line, coal may not affect Hungary. But they just keep coming, you have to stop here,” he said. According to the International Energy Agency, nearly 60% of Hungary’s oil imports in 2021 came from Russia.
The EU as a whole is very reliant on Russian oil, and no matter how the ban is implemented, it will raise gas prices and have a significant impact on Russia’s economy.
Orban said that he also rejected the EU’s plan to sanction Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. “We will not allow church leaders to be put on a sanctions list,” he said.
The EU needs the consent of all 27 of its members to approve the new sanctions package. Orban said he could accept the new Russia sanctions besides the oil ban and the measures against Russian church leaders.
Yes, it will likely result in increased profitability requiring less production.
That’ll teach ’em.
I’m beginning to wonder if COVID has made people more susceptible to delusional behavior. Every time the EU tries to reduce the supply of oil, the price goes up. It hurts them. But it doesn’t necessarily hurt Russia.
To be fair, it’s not so much about profitability as it is about revenue. The EU wants to cut Russia’s revenue. But it isn’t clear that they have the economic clout to make that happen within a timeframe that would change Russia’s military posture in Ukraine. Russia has plenty of markets outside the EU, and there are already significant workarounds in play within Europe to bypass their own sanctions.
Maybe their goal isn’t to hurt Russia but to force their people into the “low energy” green utopia the EU elites have been dreaming of the past decade?
Both?
These sanctions on Russia are the ultimate act of self harming by European countries. Of course it will not be the rich elite, the political classes who will suffer, it will be the ordinary people. This has to be stopped.
But think of how much they will reduce their carbon footprint! Greta will be pleased
“They have crossed this red line… But they just keep coming”. You either have sovereignty or not. Baning church leaders, how about a rabbi or a mullah? Who is an economy entity, the EU to chose who is a legitimate spiritual leaders or not?
When Ukraine & Russia do work this thing out, they need leaders of conscious. Face it this is an elective war.
This will continue until the benefits of being in the EU are outweighed by the obvious costs. Then the EU will shed more and more countries.
One voice of reason on the ship of fools named Europe Union.
Tell the EU to shove it!
Cui bono … and it ain’t Europe!!