'Dirty Deal' Between Orbán & Putin is Causing 'Hungarian Gas Reserves to Run Dry', Claims DK

  • 6 Jan 2023 9:26 AM
  • Hungary Matters
'Dirty Deal' Between Orbán & Putin is Causing 'Hungarian Gas Reserves to Run Dry', Claims DK
The Democratic Coalition opposition party has accused Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of striking a “dirty deal” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Hungarian gas reserves were “running dry” as a result.

László Varju, DK’s shadow minister for energy and utility affairs, said in a statement on Thursday that the government had “failed to arrange the purchase of gas other than Russian gas and has been buying gas from Russia for several times of the world market price” as a result of the “Orbán-Putin deal”.

“While other European Union member states are not allowing themselves to be blackmailed, and refuse to finance Putin’s war, Orbán has opted for dependence on Russian gas,” he said.

“As a result, Hungarians are paying seven times the price of gas, while gas reserves are running dry in the middle of winter,” he added.

He said the shadow government was “Hungary’s only hope” when it came to ensuring affordable gas supplies for everyone.

MTI Photo: Zsolt Szigetváry

  • How does this content make you feel?

XpatLoop Media Partner

Hungary Matters

Launched in January 2014, this newsletter published on week days covers 'everything you need to know about what’s going on in Hungary and beyond', according to its publisher the state media agency MTI.

Explore More Reports

  • Budapest Crisis: Lifeline Loan or Power Grab?

    Budapest Crisis: Lifeline Loan or Power Grab?

    • 11 Dec 2025 6:17 AM

    The government's aid loan programme is a "safety belt" for Budapest to ensure that the city remains functional, its employees get paid, and "nobody pockets the money owed to them", Alexandra Szentkirályi, the group leader of the ruling parties in the city assembly, said on Facebook on Monday.

  • Budget Crisis Threatens Budapest’s Public Services, City Hall Rejects Insolvency Ultimatum

    Budget Crisis Threatens Budapest’s Public Services, City Hall Rejects Insolvency Ultimatum

    • 2 Dec 2025 6:15 AM

    The financial stability of Budapest is currently at the centre of a fierce political standoff between the City Assembly and the national government. The dispute intensified this week after Mayor Gergely Karácsony and the city administration rejected a government proposal to declare the capital insolvent, an act the government had framed as a prerequisite for offering financial aid.

  • New Poll: Fidesz Ahead by 400,000 Votes If Election Held Now

    New Poll: Fidesz Ahead by 400,000 Votes If Election Held Now

    • 1 Dec 2025 3:43 PM

    If Hungary's election were held now, Fidesz would win 47 percent of the vote, up from 46 percent in August, while the opposition Tisza Party trails at 40 percent, according to a Nezopont Institute survey of 1,000 respondents conducted between Nov 24 and 26.