Ukraine, Hungary summon ambassadors over Russian gas deal

Ukraine, Hungary summon ambassadors over Russian gas deal

SeattlePI.com

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BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A diplomatic conflict between Hungary and Ukraine deepened on Tuesday when the two countries summoned each others' ambassadors over Budapest's decision to sign a long-term contract to purchase Russian gas, something Ukraine considers a blow to its economic and national security interests.

The 15-year agreement between Hungary and Russian gas company Gazprom was finalized on Monday, and involves the import of an annual 4.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to Hungary through lines that bypass Ukraine, depriving it of lucrative transit fees.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Monday saying Kyiv was “surprised and disappointed” by Hungary’s deal with Russia, calling the move “a purely political, economically unreasonable decision taken in favor of the Kremlin."

The ministry added it would bring the deal, set to go into effect on Friday, to the European Union's executive commission to assess its compliance with EU energy regulations.

Writing on Facebook on Tuesday, Hungary’s foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto, said he was “deeply outraged” over what he called Ukraine's attempts to block the energy agreement, and that Ukraine's ambassador had been summoned over the “attempt to violate our sovereignty.”

“The Ukrainians have nothing to do with what we agree on and with whom. We consider it a serious violation of our sovereignty and national security interests that they want to prevent the secure supply of gas to our country, the heating of Hungarian people’s homes and the operation of industry,” Szijjarto wrote.

In response, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry summoned the Hungarian ambassador on Tuesday in order to relay Kyiv’s position on the deal.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told Ukrainian TV channel ICTV that Hungary had “dealt a blow...

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