Official Brussels calls on Washington to discuss ways to soften its sanctions against Russia's Gazprombank.
Points of attention
- Some European states and companies have expressed outrage at the sanctions against Gazprombank, as they threaten the security of gas supplies.
- Hungary and Slovakia are among the few EU countries that continue to receive Russian gas.
- Different scenarios of actions are being considered, including the possibility of making payments for gas through other channels.
The EU seeks to ease sanctions against the Russia
What is important to understand is that "Gazprombank" plays a key role in ensuring the supply of Russian natural gas to the countries of the European Union.
As British journalists managed to find out, official Brussels and Washington are currently discussing the type and scope of mitigating measures.
Negotiations between the parties began after some European states and companies warned that sanctions against Gazprombank would pose a risk to the security of gas supplies.
In addition, it is emphasized that the share of Russian pipeline gas in EU imports fell from more than 40% in 2021 to about 8% in 2023.
Among the EU countries, only Hungary and Slovakia continue to receive pipeline Russian gas; until recently, this list also included Austria.
According to insiders, Brussels and Washington are currently considering different scenarios.
In particular, they are actively discussing the proposal to allow making payments through the Luxembourg subsidiary of Gazprombank or other payment channels.
Hungary calls on the US to partially lift sanctions on Gazprom
It also recently became known that the official Budapest turned to Washington with a request to lift the sanctions on Gazprom of the Russian Federation, which relate to payments for natural gas.
Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán's team says they could have a negative impact on some US allies.
Yesterday, we submitted our request to the relevant US authorities, which calls for Gazprombank to be exempted from sanctions when it comes to payments for natural gas.
Peter Sijarto
Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary
According to the Hungarian diplomat, any exemption would be similar to those granted to other Russian banks that process payments for Russian uranium purchased by the United States.
