BUDAPEST, March 9. /TASS/. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has sent a letter to the European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen calling for an immediate removal of EU sanctions against Russian energy. The head of government has said that he came forward with such a proposal amid the threat of a sharp rise in oil and gas prices due to the conflict in the Middle East.

"We must review and suspend all sanctions imposed on Russian energy across Europe. Today I put forward this initiative in a letter to European Commission President, Mrs. von der Leyen," he said in a video address broadcast by the M1 TV channel.

The threat of rising energy prices in Europe has arisen not only because of military actions in the Middle East, but also as a result of Ukraine's suspension of the transit of Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline, Orban noted. "The oil blockade imposed by Vladimir Zelensky represents the most serious threat not only to Hungary and Slovakia, but also to the whole EU," he stressed.

Russian oil has not been flowing via the Druzhba pipeline since January 27. Hungary and Slovakia have asked Croatia to allow Russian crude to be delivered via the Adriatic Pipeline. It is expected to be delivered to the Croatian port of Omisalj by sea. The Hungarian government has also decided to provide MOL with 250,000 tons of oil from its strategic reserves for its refinery. These reserves are sufficient for three months.