Hungary's Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Economic Relations, Peter Szijjártó, said it was confirmed that the suspension of oil transit from Russia to Hungary and Slovakia was coordinated by Brussels.

The events and my negotiations in recent days have confirmed my feeling that this is a process coordinated by Brussels - said Szijjártó, speaking at the festival organized by the Matthias Corwin College.

When asked if the minister thought that Brussels had ordered Kiev to ban transit, Szijjártó confirmed that he thought so.

According to his words, the European Union "could not come to terms with the fact that Hungary, despite all the pressures, does not give up and continues its policy aimed at establishing peace".

The EU is very weak, but not so weak that it cannot influence the candidate country, if it threatens the energy supply of two member countries - added the minister.

On December 5, 2022, as part of sanctions against Russia, the European Commission banned the delivery of Russian oil by sea to EU countries, but Hungary and Slovakia secured the right to receive Russian oil through the pipeline until the end of 2025. This clause caused active opposition from the European Commission.

On July 17, Ukraine suspended the transit of the Lukoil company's oil through its territory to Hungary and Slovakia because this company was blacklisted by Kyiv. Energy supply to these countries from Russia takes place through the Druzhba gas pipeline, which passes through the territory of Ukraine.