Hungary's foreign minister lands in Moscow to discuss post-sanctions deals

Szijjártó announced on Tuesday morning that a large delegation from Hungary was heading to Moscow to discuss cooperation after sanctions.

“Sanctions will not last forever, so we must be ready to take a favorable position at the start of a new period. That is why we are going to Moscow with a large delegation of businessmen and entrepreneurs,” he wrote ahead of the trip.

In Moscow, Szijjártó is taking part in a meeting of the Russian-Hungarian intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation.

The negotiations include discussions about the construction of the Paks II nuclear power plant in the city of Paks, Hungary. According to Szijjártó, the first stage of construction will begin next week.

Earlier, local media reported that Hungary is preparing for economic cooperation with Russia in a post-war format: a delegation is traveling to Moscow to discuss business partnerships and strategic supplies.

Szijjártó’s visits to Russia

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó has visited Russia so frequently that it raised suspicion among his European diplomatic colleagues.

The last time Szijjártó was in Moscow was on December 28, when he accompanied Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. They met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

During that visit, Orbán’s delegation discussed energy issues with the Kremlin leader, as the United States had granted Hungary a one-year exemption from sanctions related to Russian oil and gas.