Overview
- After a White House meeting, President Donald Trump said he is considering exempting Hungary from new U.S. measures on Russian oil, citing the country’s lack of seaports and pipeline dependence.
- No formal U.S. decision has been announced; Viktor Orbán later told Hungarian journalists he secured a “general and indefinite” waiver, a claim not confirmed by U.S. sources and criticized by Kyiv and several EU officials.
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine will not allow Russia to profit by selling oil to Hungary.
- The sanctions, which target two major Russian oil producers, are set to take effect later in November, and Hungary says it relies on Russia for roughly 86% of its oil and 74% of its gas.
- Energy and defense talks accompanied the visit, with reporting of a new nuclear cooperation deal and initial U.S. fuel purchases, ongoing discussions on LNG supplies, and Hungarian media citing about $700 million in prospective U.S. arms sales.