CNN: Orban Is Trapped
13- 25.10.2025, 16:30
- 27,100
Photo: Getty Images
Hungary's prime minister has been dealt a double blow.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has suffered a political blow - after the Donald Trump administration canceled a planned summit with Vladimir Putin in Budapest and also announced new sanctions against Russian oil companies. These are Washington's first restrictions against Moscow since Trump's return to the White House, writes CNN.
Even last week, Orban rejoiced that his country would be the venue for the meeting between the two world leaders, calling Budapest "the path to peace." But now, instead of a diplomatic triumph, Hungary finds itself under double economic pressure.
US sanctions and new EU bans are a double blow to Hungary
Trump's sanctions against Russian oil giants are aimed at cutting into the Kremlin's revenues, but they are also hurting Hungary's own economy. Against the backdrop of most EU countries reducing their dependence on Russian energy from 2022, Budapest, on the contrary, has plunged further into it.
According to data from think tanks CSD and CREA, 92% of Hungary's crude oil imports now come from Russia - compared to 61% before the war. Since the beginning of the year alone, Hungarian purchases have brought the Kremlin 5.4 billion euros, equivalent to the cost of 1,800 Iskander-M missiles.
The EU has also confirmed plans to ban imports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) from 2027, further complicating the energy situation for Budapest. Orban himself admits that without Russian energy supplies, his country's economy could be "brought to its knees."
Orban promises to "circumvent" sanctions
Despite pressure from the United States and Brussels, Orban said Friday that his government is "working on how to circumvent sanctions," without specifying exactly how it plans to do so.
This stance could pose a serious challenge to the Trump administration. As Elina Rybakova, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, notes, Washington's reaction to Hungary's attempts to avoid sanctions will show how strongly Trump is willing to stand up to Putin's allies.
"What will it be: a friendly meeting between Putin and Trump in Hungary or a rejection of the Orban administration if they try to avoid sanctions?" said Rybakova in a commentary for CNN.
Political crisis at home
The situation is worsening for Orban on the domestic front as well. He faces a growing opposition movement led by his former associate Peter Magyar, who could seriously contest elections in the spring.
Orban, who has held onto power for more than a decade, had hoped the Trump-Putin summit would be a symbol of political success and international influence for him. What he got instead was a canceled summit, new sanctions and the threat of an economic crisis that could undermine his position on the eve of the election.
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