Budapest/Bratislava, June 23 -- Hungary and Slovakia have blocked a new sanctions package proposed by the European Union (EU) to ban Russian oil and gas, citing threats to national energy security, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto announced Monday in a video posted on his official Facebook page.
Szijjarto said the plan to ban Russian crude oil and natural gas imports would destabilise supply and raise household energy costs.
Speaking at the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, Szijjarto also rejected calls to expand military and financial support to Ukraine, stressing Hungary's opposition to further aid or military involvement.
He warned that attempts to override previous energy exemp...