Szijjarto: Brussels decisions hurt Europe energy security

The foreign ministry cited Peter Szijjarto after attending a meeting of EU energy ministers welcoming the fact that “no concrete decisions have been made” on introducing a cap on gas prices. Hungary will not support any proposal on introducing such measures because it would pose serious risk to the continent’s energy supplies and send energy prices skyrocketing, he said.

Hungary supports diversification in the form of using additional resources, such as importing more gas from Azerbaijan and increasing the capacity of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, Szijjarto said, adding that “the real solution” to the energy crisis is in infrastructure development including the construction of more pipelines and LNG terminals.

Hungary supports keeping energy related decisions in national competence, allowing member states the autonomy to decide whether or not to join mandatory community-level energy purchase, the foreign minister said.

Szijjarto said Hungary’s natural gas supplies were secure and its gas storage facilities were 48,2 percent full, as against the European average of 26,9 percent. The government is paying increased attention to the smooth “physical and legal operation” of the TurkStream gas pipeline through which gas flows are steady between east and west.

He said the world was living “its first global energy crisis in history” and called for working out solutions for the long term.