Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said the Hungarian government has requested that United States authorities exempt Russia's Gazprombank from sanctions to allow countries in the region to pay for their gas deliveries.
Fielding questions from journalists after a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Minister Szijjártó said that the United States' chief diplomat had signalled a willingness for some form of consultations with allies on the sanctions affecting Gazprombank.
"It would have been better if this had happened before...but that's how things turned out," he added.
Minister Szijjártó said the new sanctions on Gazprombank could cause serious difficulties for Hungary and two other NATO members, as well as for Serbia, as any stoppage in imports of Russian gas would threaten the security of their energy supplies.
"I have indicated to the American secretary of state that this is the kind of measure that could cause trouble for allies," he added.
Minister Szijjártó said the government had submitted a request to the relevant US authority on Tuesday asking for an exemption from the sanctions in the case of payments for gas deliveries. Such an exemption would not be without precedent, he added, noting that a number of Russian banks, mainly ones involved with the trade of Russian uranium, had received similar exemptions.
Minister Szijjártó said he had consulted on the matter by phone with the energy ministers of Serbia, Slovakia and Turkey, with whom coordinated steps would be taken.
Hungary ensures one-third of Ukraine's imports of electricity and will continue to do so in future, too, he added.