Hungary is set to increase its purchases of Russian gas this winter, state energy giant Gazprom said, despite growing criticism in the West that this means Budapest is funding Moscow's war in Ukraine.

Speaking on state television on October 22, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said that “significant additional volumes are reaching the Hungarian market,” revealing that 1.3 billion cubic meters of gas had been delivered to Hungary in addition to existing contracts this year.

“We will continue to supply additional volumes during the autumn-winter period of the upcoming winter,” said Miller, who has been sanctioned by the US and UK for his role in supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The announcement came just days after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing.

Discussions between the two leaders on October 17, on the sidelines of the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation chaired by Chinese President Xi Jinping, focused on energy cooperation, including the transportation of gas and oil as well as the supply of nuclear fuel.

Mr Orban has said that Budapest “will not allow sanctions that could further increase inflation in Hungary” and has frequently blocked discussions on tougher restrictions at EU level.

The Hungarian leader has also cultivated a close personal relationship with Mr Putin over the years, and was slow to condemn Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and maintained a friendly stance towards Russia throughout the conflict.

Images of the Hungarian prime minister and Russian president shaking hands in China have caused unease in Brussels amid growing concerns about cracks in Western unity.

Before meeting Mr Putin, the Hungarian prime minister informed European Council President Charles Michel, who “strongly objected to it”, Mr Michel’s spokesman said.

US Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman called the meeting between Mr Orban and Mr Putin “disturbing” and said there was now a need to discuss the central European country’s “deeper relationship with Russia”.

Hungary's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade declined to confirm or comment on Gazprom's statement.

In April, Oleg Ustenko, an economic adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said a series of new deals between Hungary and Russia had made the EU member state “complicit” in the conflict in Ukraine. “Buying more gas from the Russians means you are giving them more possibilities to escalate the war,” Ustenko told Politico EU.

“Hungary’s energy supply security requires uninterrupted deliveries of gas, oil and nuclear fuel,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said after Budapest reached an agreement with Moscow earlier this year allowing Gazprom to send additional supplies to Hungary.

“To meet this condition, Hungarian-Russian energy cooperation must be uninterrupted. It has nothing to do with politics,” Mr Orban’s top diplomat said .

Minh Duc (According to Politico EU, Euronews)