The EU's Fate Is in Vladimir Putin's Hands

Jakarta — VIVA - President Vladimir Putin has stated that Russia will withdraw from the European Union’s natural gas market and redirect its supplies to a region or country other than the EU, without waiting for Brussels to impose an import ban to take effect. He delivered the statement after hosting Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto at the Kremlin, Moscow. “There is no political motive here. But it is not a decision yet; it’s merely my thinking,” Putin said, as quoted by Russia Today, on Friday, 6 March 2026. Vladimir Putin suggested Moscow could redirect supplies to ‘markets of developing countries’, given the EU’s repeated plans to halt all Russian energy resources altogether. “The energy crisis in the European Union is the result of the ‘misguided policies’ pursued by the bloc’s authorities for years,” Putin said. The president also noted that Russia “has always and remains a reliable energy supplier” for all partners, including the EU. He then cited Eastern European countries such as Slovakia and Hungary as examples. “We supply them with energy resources, both crude oil and natural gas, and we intend to continue doing so in the future,” he said. Following the meeting, Szijjarto revealed that Budapest had secured assurances of crude oil and natural gas supplies from Moscow. Russia and Hungary have also agreed to cooperate in diversifying energy supply routes. “We have already agreed that if transport routes become unavailable for various reasons, we will always seek alternative solutions. For instance, if oil transport via pipelines continues to face difficulties, we will consider maritime transport options,” said Peter Szijjarto. Hungary, as well as Slovakia, recently experienced disruptions to Russian crude oil supplies after Ukraine closed the Druzhba pipeline at the end of January 2026. Kyiv claims the pipeline was damaged by long-range Russian strikes, which Moscow denies. Budapest and Bratislava accuse Kyiv of “blackmail,” saying Kyiv deliberately halted supplies for political reasons and threatened retaliation.