Hungarian Foreign Minister arrives in Moscow for fifth visit since February 2022
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Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto arrived in Moscow on the evening of Oct. 12, according to photos he posted to Facebook.
"Arriving in Moscow. Cold weather is coming, energy security is in the spotlight again," he captioned the photos.
Unlike other European officials, Szijjarto is a regular visitor to Russia, with this trip being his fifth to the country since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The minister is in Moscow to take part in the Russian Energy Week forum, according to Russian media.
He previously attended Russian Energy Week in October 2022, following his July 2022 trip to the country to discuss natural gas transportation.
He again flew to Moscow in April 2023 for energy talks.
In June 2023, he was the only high-ranking official from the West to attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The event is held under the patronage of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On Sept. 22, Szijjarto told the Russian state news agency TASS that new sanctions against Russia "are not necessary" and "cause more harm to Europe than to Russia."
Budapest has a history of opposing international sanctions against Russia while blocking funding for Ukraine, despite Hungary being a member of the European Union and NATO.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that Ukraine is a financially "non-existent" and "no longer sovereign" state due to its "dependence" on international support.
On Oct. 3, Budapest proposed cutting a €50 billion European Union funding package for Ukraine down to €25 billion.
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