Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) considers peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine unlikely. Russia is the aggressor and believes it can create facts with weapons, he criticized Thursday. His Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto had previously said during a visit to Vienna that the focus should be on peace and a quick end to the war. EU sanctions against Russia are problematic.
They are also responsible for the high inflation in Hungary, Sziijarto said at a joint press conference with his Austrian colleague. The Hungarian minister stated, among other things, that he would reject sanctions on Russian gas. Budapest will veto sanctions affecting Gazprom or Gazprom Bank. As reported, Hungary did not declare an energy emergency until Wednesday. The country plans to purchase another 700 million cubic meters of gas to fill storage tanks. He hasn’t revealed where this is supposed to come from – just enough that it won’t fail because of the money.
Hungary relies on nuclear energy
The same should apply to the construction and renovation of nuclear power plants. Austria’s neighbor is planning a new reactor that will be connected to the grid in 2030 and built to Russian design and with a Russian loan worth billions. “No costs should be spared in the area of safety.” Earlier there was criticism that the site would be located on an earthquake line. Total nuclear energy production will be increased from the current 2000 to 4400 megawatts.
“Don’t confuse cause and effect”
Austria takes a different approach here. Last week, all parties represented in the National Council spoke out against the construction of nuclear power plants. Schallenberg also said on Thursday that he had a different opinion about the EU sanctions against Russia and about peace in Ukraine. He hopes there will be “room for diplomacy”, “but it takes two to dance.” Russia is currently leading to more migratory movements, which is destabilizing the EU. In the case of sanctions, “cause and effect should not be confused”. The discussion is no longer theoretical.
Source: Krone
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