Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban defied the EU on Friday (November 28, 2025) by promising Vladimir Putin he will keep buying Russian oil, as he attended a Kremlin meeting held in the midst of a diplomatic push to end Moscow’s Ukraine offensive.
Mr. Orban — in power in the EU and NATO country since 2010 — has throughout the war maintained ties with the Kremlin, while also criticising Hungary’s neighbour Ukraine.
It was the Hungarian nationalist’s fourth meeting with Mr. Putin since Moscow launched Europe’s worst conflict since the Second World War.
The talks will have infuriated Brussels, which has called on EU members to end their dependence on Russian energy and is trying to make its voice heard in peace settlement negotiations on Ukraine.
“We have not given up cooperation [with Russia] in any area, regardless of any external pressure,” Mr. Orban told Mr. Putin. “I would like to reiterate that energy supplies from Russia form the basis of Hungary’s energy supply now and will remain so in the future.”
