The United States is considering imposing restrictions against Hungary over the country’s refusal to toe the general line, so to speak, and follow in the footsteps of the West in its proxy war against Russia in Ukraine, local media reported.
One such possible punitive measure could be sanctions imposed on influential Hungarian individuals, similar to what occurred in 2014, Budapest online edition 444.hu wrote, citing independent diplomatic sources.
In October 2014, the administration of then-US President Barack Obama banned six Hungarians from entering the US. The government of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban slammed the move, denouncing it as a political attack by the US against Hungary in response to refusal to serve Western interests.
US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman has convened a press conference for April 12, and may use the occasion to announce sanctions, although the embassy has not officially indicated anything to substantiate this, the report said.
As it is, relations between Hungary and the US are increasingly tense. Budapest threatened to veto EU financial aid to Ukraine last year, and has refused to send weapons to the Kiev regime. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has repeatedly criticized Brussels' sanctions imposed on Russia. The head of the country's Foreign Ministry, Peter Szijjarto, said that the self-harming sanctions "have failed" and underscored the vast number of economic problems plaguing Europe as fallout from them.
The Hungarian government has also been reluctant to ratify the NATO accession bids of Finland and Sweden. Viktor Orban accused both Nordic countries of spreading "outright lies" about the state of democracy in Hungary. Budapest has also been under pressure to wean itself off Russian energy supplies. On Tuesday, Hungary's foreign minister said Russian energy giant Gazprom would maintain an option to supply additional gas to Hungary this year, besides the deliveries under a long-term deal agreed earlier.
Thus, the report in the Hungarian media claims the White House is finding it increasingly difficult to put up with the Orban government's stance on the Ukraine conflict.
As for the US ambassador to Hungary, David Pressman, a gay human rights lawyer who took up the position in September 2022, he has frequently mounted open criticism of the Hungarian government. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto lashed out at him in February, saying that he had no business interfering in Hungary's domestic affairs. David Pressman reportedly met a month ago with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and senior White House officials to discuss the "anti-American rhetoric" from senior Hungarian officials, with pundits taking it as a sign of a looming step up in pressure on Budapest to change course.