Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said the importance of nuclear energy in ensuring supply security and a green transition has been made clear by the "largest ever" energy crisis hitting Europe.
Addressing the 7th Central & Eastern Europe Nuclear Industry Congress in Prague, Minister Szijjártó called on the European Commission to ensure that nuclear energy will not “in any way” be restricted by the sanctions imposed on Russia after it attacked Ukraine in February, the ministry said. The exemption was declared when the sanctions were adopted, and all EU and national institutions should respect that, Minister Szijjártó said. “Delaying or hampering nuclear investments can in effect harm the sovereignty of European states, of which energy security is a key element,” Minister Szijjártó said. Hungary sees nuclear energy, and the upgrade of its nuclear plant in Paks, as key to its energy security, and the institutions slowing the works are harming its sovereignty, he said. Due to the war in Ukraine and Brussels’ sanctions policy, Europe is now facing the “most severe energy crisis of its history”, which is now casting doubts on the continent’s energy security, he said, adding that nuclear energy provided an escape from “utterly irrational international energy prices”.
Photo credit: Facebook/Szijjártó Péter