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Orbán secures one-year exemption from US sanctions on Russian energy
The US has granted Hungary a one-year exemption from sanctions on Russian oil and gas imports after Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán pressed his case during a meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington. The Hungarian PM met the US president at the White House on Friday for their first bilateral talks since Trump’s return to power, arguing that Hungary had "no viable alternative" to Russian energy. “The consequences for the Hungarian people, and for the Hungarian economy, not to get oil and gas from Russia” would be severe, Orbán said. Trump, who has been urging Europe to reduce reliance on Russian energy, appeared sympathetic. “They don’t have the advantage of having sea,” he said, noting that “many European countries are buying oil and gas from Russia, and they have been for years.”
A White House official said alongside the sanctions exemption, Hungary had agreed to purchase $600m worth of US liquefied natural gas. Bloomberg reported that Orbán was expected to offer commitments to buy US LNG and nuclear fuel as part of the deal. The meeting, marked by warm exchanges, saw Trump describe Orbán as a “great leader” and call for European countries to “respect Hungary and respect this leader very, very strongly.” He also praised Orbán’s hardline anti-immigration stance, saying “Look what’s happened to Europe with the immigration,” Trump said. “You go to some of the countries, they’re unrecognizable now because of what they’ve done. And Hungary is very recognizable.”
Orbán, who has been accused by EU critics of cosying up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he wanted to revive plans for a Trump–Putin summit to end the war in Ukraine. During his remarks, he praised Trump and attacked the previous Democratic administration, claiming the bilateral relationship had now entered “a golden age.” The Hungarian leader is reportedly seeking to host Trump in Budapest ahead of upcoming elections, as he faces strong domestic competition from a new challenger, Peter Magyar.
Pro-Orbán media firm purchases Hungary’s top-selling tabloid ahead of election
A media firm close to Viktor Orbán’s ruling Fidesz party, bought the tabloid from the Swiss media group Ringier, 444 reports. The purchase comes ahead of crucial elections next year, when Orbán faces an unprecedented opposition challenge, and is widely seen as another attempt to tighten government control over the country’s media. Indamedia also acquired several other titles including Glamour magazine and Kiskegyed. Blikk’s former editor-in-chief, Iván Zsolt Nagy, said he and another senior manager were leaving “in mutual agreement” with the new owners.
After the move, only a few independent outlets are left in Hungary’s media landscape. The deal gives Orbán’s allies control of the country’s most-read daily, whose readership includes many undecided voters. Over the past 15 years, Orbán’s government has consolidated power across the press through loyal business figures, including Indamedia’s co-owner Miklós Vaszily. Indamedia received a 13 billion forint (~£ 29 million) credit line from Viktor Orbán’s childhood friend Lőrinc Mészáros' bank, MBH, right before the purchase of Ringier Hungary, Hungarian news outlet HVG reported . Vaszily, is the chairman of the supervisory board of MBH and also the chairman and CEO of TV2, a company linked to Mészáros.
US to cut funding of Radio Free Europe’s Hungarian service ahead of Orbán visit
Kari Lake, the head of the US Agency for Global Media, is planning to shut down the Hungarian service of the congressionally funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a move widely seen as a gift to Viktor Orbán. Two days before Orbán’s scheduled visit to the White House, Lake wrote to Republican congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, announcing that the Trump administration would withdraw funding for Radio Free Europe’s Hungarian-language service, Szabad Európa, 444 reports. Lake claimed the outlet’s “programming has undermined President Trump’s foreign policy by opposing the duly elected prime minister Viktor Orban.” The letter was shared online by former Voice of America correspondent Steve Herman, who retired earlier this year amid Lake’s controversial overhaul of the agency.
Lake’s decision has drawn criticism from observers who see it as a blow to press freedom. Lake argued that the decision was necessary to avoid interference in the affairs of a NATO ally, and suggested similar cuts would be made in other NATO countries. However, the letter offered no evidence of any content undermining Orbán’s government. Critics say the timing of the decision underscores how Trump’s campaign to dismantle the US Agency for Global Media and its outlets, including Voice of America, is serving the interests of his allies abroad.