Ukraine disappointed over gas deal between Russia, Hungary

KYIV, Ukraine

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry on Monday postponed the 5th meeting of the Ukrainian-Hungarian intergovernmental commission on economic development due to a new natural gas deal between Russia and Hungary.

In a statement, the ministry expressed disappointment with the new long-term contract for the supply of gas bypassing Ukraine.

The statement said the deal has harmed bilateral relations between Ukraine and Hungary.

The meeting of the intergovernmental economic development commission had been scheduled to be held from Sept. 29-30.

Ukraine will apply to the European Commission to assess the compliance of the new gas deal with European energy legislation, it noted.

-Hungary guarantees security of its energy supply for 15 years

Hungarian Foreign and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto announced Monday that Budapest signed an agreement with Russian energy company Gazprom to purchase natural gas.

Speaking at a press conference, Szijjarto said that thanks to the agreement, they guaranteed the security of Hungary's energy supply for 15 years.

The minister noted that energy supply security in Central Europe has always been of critical importance in terms of both strategic and national security, adding that natural gas has an extraordinary importance for both Hungary and Europe.

The deal includes the annual purchase of 4.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas, he said.

He added that with the current agreement, Hungary will buy natural gas at a much more affordable price than the previous agreement.

*Writing by Seda Sevencan