Orban will ask Trump to make an exception for Hungary in applying sanctions against Russian oil companies
Viktor Orban with President Donald Trump at the International Summit for Peace in Gaza, which took place in Egypt on October 13, 2025, PHOTO: Yoan Valat / AP / Profimedia Images
Hungary hopes to be exempted from US sanctions against Russian oil companies Lukoil and Rosneft so that it can continue to import oil and natural gas from Russia, a topic that will be addressed by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at his meeting with US President Donald Trump on November 7 at the White House, Orban's chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, said on Thursday.
Viktor Orban meets Donald Trump at the White House on November 7. What will they talk about?
“Our goal is for President Trump to maintain his position (regarding Budapest's special situation) and for Hungary to be able to benefit from an exception to the American sanctions”, even if the latest US sanctions against Russia do not directly affect Hungary's supply of oil and natural gas from Russia, the Hungarian official told the media, according to EFE and Agerpres.
Trump himself recently admitted that Hungary is in a special situation, as it is a landlocked country and does not have enough domestic production of oil and natural gas to cover its needs, so it is forced to import energy.
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An alternative in Hungary's oil supply could be the Adria pipeline from neighboring Croatia, but the Hungarian government accuses the country of demanding too high transit fees, and considers the pipeline's capacity insufficient anyway.
The US Treasury Department on October 22 announced sanctions against two major Russian oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, in response to Russia's “lack of serious commitment to a peace process aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.”
Russia remains one of the main oil producers, despite the sanctions, Putin boasts. “Found new export and payment channels”
After arguing that US sanctions would not significantly affect Russia's economy, Putin sent his special economic envoy to talk to the Trump administration
