Hungary believes the EU should decide on extending sanctions against Russia only after consulting the new U.S. administration.
This statement was made by Hungarian Minister for EU Affairs János Bóka.
According to him, Hungary has not yet decided whether it will support the extension of sanctions.
“I think it is quite natural that before we make a decision to extend the sanctions for another six months, we should ask the new U.S. administration how they see the future of the sanctions regime,” János Bóka told journalists in Brussels.
“The decision on Hungary’s position has not yet been made. We want to delay our decision until we know how the U.S. administration views the future of the sanctions regime,” Bóka added.
The EU has approved 15 packages of sanctions against Russia since 2022 and is working on a 16th set of measures.
According to Bóka, the sanctions planned for renewal involve various sectors of the economy and the freezing of the Russian central bank’s assets.
The EU renews its existing sanctions every six months, requiring unanimous approval from all 27 member states.
