Hungary’s President Viktor Orban has decided to forge closer ties with Belarus to advance the construction of the country’ s second nuclear power plant. Despite the sanctions imposed by the European Union on Belarus, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó traveled to Minsk and publicly stated that Hungary’s position is clear:“The fewer sanctions, the more cooperation!“.
Hungary and Belarus sign nuclear power plant agreement
The two countries have signed an agreement in which Belarus will assist Hungary in the construction of its second PAK reactor. This new project is in addition to the first reactor, currently under construction since 2014 by the Russian state-owned company Rosatom, which will also be in charge of the second reactor with the support of Belarus.
In the early 1980s, Hungary commissioned its first commercial nuclear reactor. Today, the country has four nuclear reactors nuclear reactors operating reactors that generate approximately half of the electricity needed to meet its national demands, according to the World Nuclear Association. The two new reactors currently under construction Rosatom have received significant parliamentary backing.
According to Szijjártó, the agreement signed is of great importance, as it will allow Hungary to benefit from the experience gained by Belarus in the construction of reactors with similar technology. The minister added that Budapest plans to strengthen cooperation with Belarus in areas not affected by sanctions, suggesting that the existing sanctions are not achieving the desired results.
Orbán and Belarus under sanctions
Belarus has been subject to EU sanctions due to fraudulent elections, repression of the opposition and for allowing Russian troops to use its territory as a base to attack Ukraine. Orban, who has fought EU sanctions since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, now faces municipal and European Parliament elections on June 9, in which his party will face an increasingly defiant opposition.
In parallel, the geopolitical context of the region is increasingly affected by energy alliances. The collaboration between Hungary and Belarus can be seen as a strategy in an environment where nuclear energy nuclear energy is becoming a vital and contested resource. The construction of these reactors not only has energy implications, but also political implications, affecting the power dynamics within the European Union and its relationship with Russia.
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Source: worldenergytrade
Photo: Shutterstock
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