Economics
Hungary Rejects Trojan Horse Label After Russian Nuclear Deal
- Hungary won’t veto sanctions on Russia alone, Szijjarto says
- Minister says Hungary respects allies who see Russia as threat
This article is for subscribers only.
Hungary pushed back against criticism that it’s acting like Russia’s Trojan horse in the European Union, with its top diplomat saying the nation won’t veto sanctions against Moscow if the rest of the trading bloc agrees to extend them.
Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto made the pledge hours after his prime minister, Viktor Orban, called President Vladimir Putin to discuss Russia’s 12.5 billion-euro ($13.2 billion) expansion of Hungary’s nuclear plant, which the EU approved after a more than yearlong probe. The decision followed Orban’s discounting the sanctions against Russian companies, individuals and industries that deepened an economic recession in the world’s biggest energy producer last month.