Russia cannot be excluded from world trade Hungarian FM says

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó asserted that Russia cannot be excluded from world trade, emphasizing that those who advocate for such exclusion often engage in secret trade with Moscow.

Speaking during a parliamentary debate, Szijjártó stated, “Should we exclude Russia from international trade? No, Russia will not be excluded. Those who claim otherwise often trade with Russia more than one might assume,” Caliber.Az reports citing Russian media.

He illustrated his point with the example of Russian oil sales, noting that as Russia increased its oil exports to India, Germany began purchasing more "Indian" oil.

Szijjártó also highlighted a pattern where Western European countries’ purchases of Russian gas tend to rise whenever their leaders declare an intention to reject Russian gas.

Russia's pipeline natural gas exports to Europe recorded an over 15 per cent year-on-year increase to 26.52 billion cubic meters in January-October 2024, according to calculations based on Gazprom's daily data on transit via Ukraine and figures provided by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG).

In the corresponding period of 2023, Russia exported approximately 23 billion cubic meters of pipeline gas to Europe.

In October, pipeline gas deliveries to Europe amounted to 2.8 billion cubic meters, almost matching 2.7 billion cubic meters a month ago and 2.74 billion cubic meters in October last year.

Russia's natural gas supply to Western and Central European countries via Ukraine totaled 12.85 billion cubic meters in the first ten months of the year, up 7 per cent on the year. In October, natural gas supply to these countries increased by 3.5 per cent month on month and 1.2 per cent year on year to 1.3 billion cubic meters.

By Vafa Guliyeva