European Union gave way to Hungary
18:31
There will be an EU oil embargo and the sixth package of sanctions. However, the oil will still be able to be imported from Russia via oil pipelines, thus avoiding Hungary's objections.
Negotiations had dragged on for several weeks, with the dispute revolving around the point of blocking Russian oil imports to EU countries. The unanimous agreement on the crude embargo was blocked for almost four weeks by Hungary, which demanded exemptions and compensation. These issues will be negotiated in the coming days.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban, following the decision to partially ban oil imports from Russia, declared: "Hungarian families can sleep peacefully."
The import ban – in accordance with Hungary's wish – will not include raw material supplied from Russia through the Druzhba pipeline. The embargo, which is obligatory for 27 countries of the Community, will apply to oil imported by tankers. Although Poland and Germany have maintained their commitment to abandon oil from Russia by the end of this year, which in practice means closing down imports via the pipeline's northern branch. And this will effectively reduce about 90 percent of Russia's oil imports to the European Union by the end of the year.
