The authorities in Budapest announced Monday that they are not ready to support the inclusion of the energy sector in the European Union’s sanctions against Russia.
“The expansion of sanctions in this area poses a serious threat to the forint (the country’s national currency),” Hungarian Finance Minister Mihaly Varga said.
The minister stressed that the EU’s restrictive measures had already caused significant damage to the Hungarian economy, in particular the currency, which on Monday fell to a record low against the euro (399 HUF per 1 euro versus 385 HUF per 1 euro the previous day).