Hungary looking to extend US sanctions waiver on Russian energy
Hungary looking to extend US sanctions waiver on Russian energy BUDAPEST, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar's government is looking to extend a one-year exemption from US sanctions for using Russian oil and gas that is due to expire in November, Foreign Minister Anita Orban told news website index.hu on Thursday.
The agreement was brokered between US President Donald Trump and right-wing Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, who lost power at an April election after 16 years in office.
S&P Global, which affirmed Hungary's credit rating at BBB- with a negative outlook in May, says more than 90% of the country's oil and gas imports come from Russia via pipelines through Ukraine, Bulgaria and Serbia.
Dependence on Russian imports is seen as a source of vulnerability for Hungary's energy-intensive economy amid broader efforts by the European Union to wean itself off Russian energy since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Anita Orban said Budapest is working on an extension of the sanctions waiver beyond November, adding Hungarian energy group MOL MOLB.BU needs more time for technological changes to diversify energy sources.
While Viktor Orban had maintained close ties with the Kremlin, Magyar's cabinet expelled 10 Russian diplomats from Hungary this month, saying they had acted in ways incompatible with their status.
(Reporting by Gergely Szakacs; Editing by Kirsten donovan)
((gergely.szakacs@thomsonreuters.com ; https://x.com/szakacsg ; https://www.reuters.com/authors/gergely-szakacs/))
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