Hungary and Slovakia block the EU’s 18th package of Russia sanctions over opposition to oil and gas restrictions

Hungary and Slovakia blocked the European Union’s 18th package of Russia sanctions, which was proposed by the European Commission in early June. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced the decision on June 23 during a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. According to him, the package would have “undermined the region’s energy security” and driven up utility prices.

“We did this because the European Union...wants to prohibit member states, including Hungary and Slovakia, from purchasing cheap Russian natural gas and cheap Russian oil as they have done previously,” Szijjártó said.

In addition to fossil fuel restrictions, the sanctions package included measures against the “shadow fleet” of tankers used by Russia to transport oil, as well as new restrictions in the financial and defense sectors. Adopting the package requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states.

Since Robert Fico was sworn in as Slovakia’s prime minister in October 2023, Bratislava has consistently taken a pro-Russian stance on such matters. In early June of this year, the country’s parliament passed a resolution prohibiting government officials from voting in favor of sanctions against Russia in international organizations. The document also calls on the cabinet to actively resist any measures that could harm Slovakia’s economy and directly blames EU sanctions policy for rising energy prices and the country’s weakening economic competitiveness. Shortly after the resolution was adopted, Fico became the only EU head of government to attend the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow — an act that drew sharp criticism from European partners and sparked street protests in Bratislava.

The move by Hungary and Slovakia to block the new sanctions package is not the first time the two countries have come out against European efforts to phase out imports of Russian energy. At a meeting of EU energy ministers earlier this month, both EU member states opposed the European Commission’s roadmap for ending the imports of Russian oil, gas, and nuclear fuel by 2027. Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjártó described the plan as a “von der Leyen–Zelensky initiative” and warned that its implementation would jeopardize the region’s energy supply, along with its electricity exports to Ukraine. Despite the opposition, the European Commission intends to use trade law provisions in order to ban new gas contracts with Russia. However, Hungary and Slovakia are expected to receive exemptions that would allow them to maintain existing contracts until 2027 and short-term agreements until 2026.

Hungary and Slovakia are the only EU countries that consistently block anti-Russian initiatives in the energy sector. In addition, both governments actively criticize Brussels’ foreign policy and call for a revision of the EU’s sanctions strategy.