Hungary will veto Bulgaria’s entry into Europe’s Schengen free travel zone unless it abolishes the transit tax on Russian gas, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry said.
The veto threat follows an agreement on Thursday by all 27 European Union (EU) members except Hungary to start accession talks with Ukraine despite its invasion by Russia, bypassing Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s grievances by getting him to leave the room.
Orban’s resistance in Brussels earned him some bonus points in Moscow, with which his nationalist government maintained regular contact even during the war in Ukraine, and which still supplies landlocked Hungary with most of its gas.
Citing Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, the ministry said Hungary has made it clear to Bulgaria that it will veto its entry into Schengen if the tax on Hungary’s main gas import route remained in place.
“We have made it clear to the Bulgarians that we will veto their entry into Schengen if they keep this for a long time if they threaten the security of Hungary’s energy supply for a long time,” said Szijjarto.
He said that Hungary would lift the veto as soon as the transit tax is abolished.
While Western European countries have made great efforts to wean themselves off Russian gas, Hungary receives 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Russia under an agreement signed in 2021, mostly via Bulgaria and Serbia.
