US prepares sanctions against Hungary for obstructing aid to Ukraine - FT
Kyiv • UNN
US senators initiate the Block Putin Act to impose sanctions on Hungarian officials. The reason is the blocking of aid to Ukraine and the purchase of oil.
In the US, two senators from both parties intend to introduce a bill that provides for the imposition of sanctions against high-ranking Hungarian officials involved in obstructing aid to Ukraine, reports the Financial Times, writes UNN.
Details
If passed, the "Block Putin" act would require US President Donald Trump to impose financial sanctions and visa restrictions on Hungarian government officials involved in the country's purchases of Russian oil and gas and who have sought to block support for Ukraine.
The bill's introduction comes as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán blocked a €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine, as he faces a difficult election campaign ahead of parliamentary elections next month.
Opinion polls have shown that Orbán, who has been prime minister since 2010, could lose power. According to the sociological company Median, on Wednesday, the opposition party Tisza had a 23 percentage point lead. Pro-government polls show a slight advantage for Orbán's ruling Fidesz party.
Orbán, an ally of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, accused Kyiv of disrupting the supply of Moscow's oil to Hungary by delaying repairs to the Druzhba pipeline, which runs through Ukraine.
Orban ordered to stop gas supplies to Ukraine via Hungary from July26.03.26, 18:16 • 4698 views
Democrat Jeanne Shaheen and Republican Thom Tillis, co-chairs of the NATO Observer Group in the Senate, are expected to introduce the bill this week. They have been outspoken about Europe's continued reliance on Russian energy.
While most of the continent sought to abandon Russian oil and gas supplies after Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Hungary and Slovakia increased their reliance on Russian energy.
Tillis stated: "The United States and our allies must remain united in supporting Ukraine and in cutting off the revenue streams that fuel Putin's war."
"This bill holds senior Hungarian officials accountable while giving Hungary a clear path to get back in line with its allies by ending its reliance on Russian energy and stopping its obstruction of support for Ukraine," he added.
Trump is close to Orbán and supported his re-election. On Wednesday, Politico reported on preparations for a visit by US Vice President J.D. Vance to Hungary a few days before the elections, on April 7-8. The Financial Times could not independently confirm this information.
Vance plans to visit Hungary to support Orbán ahead of elections18.03.26, 21:23 • 8756 views
Shaheen, a leading Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said: "It's incredible that Vice President Vance is allegedly planning to visit Hungary to support a corrupt government that continues to fund the Russian war machine."
"If we want to end the war in Ukraine, the Trump administration must consistently apply the same standards to our allies; no one, especially Viktor Orbán, should receive an indulgence," she said.
Trump has criticized Europe for its continued purchases of Russian energy and called on the continent to take the lead in supporting Ukraine.
"They buy oil and gas from Russia while fighting Russia," Trump said in his speech at the UN General Assembly in September.
The senators' draft bill, as indicated, does not explicitly mention Orbán as a target for sanctions. According to a congressional aide, it is up to the Trump administration to determine which Hungarian officials were involved in delaying aid to Ukraine and maintaining the country's dependence on Russian energy.
Hungarian government officials did not immediately respond to emails and calls for comment.
Orbán and his foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, have long sought close ties with Russia, with Szijjártó meeting his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, more than 20 times since the war began in 2022, the publication writes.
Hungary's ruling Fidesz party, the publication notes, has made anti-Ukrainian slogans a central element of its election campaign and insists on maintaining Russian oil imports.
"If President [Volodymyr] Zelensky wants to receive money from Brussels, he must open the Druzhba oil pipeline," Orbán said in a video message to the President of Ukraine last week. "They openly state that they do not want to let cheap Russian oil into Hungary, so the situation is very simple. No oil - no money."